The Los Angeles Lakers are enjoying a strong stretch in the current NBA season. With a record of 33–21, the team is currently sitting in fifth position in the Western Conference standings.
Now, as they prepare for their Feb. 20 matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers, head coach JJ Redick delivered encouraging news that could make a major difference for the team moving forward.
JJ Redick’s Latest Revelation Regarding the Lakers Squad
Lakers reporter Mike Trudell recently took to X to share that after LA’s first practice back on the court, Redick said it looks like the team will have everyone available and ready to go for tomorrow night’s game against the Clippers. That includes Luka Dončić as well.
“It’s funny, we were talking before the season about building continuity with those three guys, and we’ve had them available together for 10 games.”
“It’s just the situation we’re in. We’re not the only team that has had a bunch of health issues throughout the season and had to manage that, but my message to the players this morning was that this is going to be a sprint for these last 28 games,” Redick said as per NBA.com.
This is big news because Dončić has been out for a while now. It all started on February 5 during the game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
It was just over three minutes left in the first half, and Dončić was spotted limping badly after appearing to feel something go wrong in his hamstring at the far end of the court. He made his way to the locker room and never came back out for the second half. The Lakers confirmed that night that he was done for the game due to left leg soreness.
From there, things got worse before they got better, as Dončić sat out the next four regular-season games while dealing with a left hamstring injury. He did suit up for one All-Star game. It was the game against the USA Stars. But he was only out there for five minutes and scored just two points. Clearly, he wasn’t anywhere close to full strength.
Before he got hurt, Dončić was averaging 32.8 points, 8.6 assists, and 7.8 rebounds per game. Now that he is healthy and back in the lineup, it is a massive boost for this team.
Trudell also reported that Austin Reaves will no longer be dealing with a minutes restriction going forward.
Reaves had missed around five weeks because of a calf injury. When he returned to the court on Feb. 4, the Lakers limited his playing time to help him ease back into full form. Despite those restrictions, he was still averaging 25.4 points, six assists, and five rebounds per game.
With both Dončić and Reaves fully available, the Lakers are essentially getting their two biggest weapons back at the same time. The Lakers look ready to make their push, and with a fully healthy roster, they will be a tough team for anyone to deal with.
