As Lakers coach JJ Redick talked after practice Monday about the long list of his players who would be listed as day-to-day for Tuesday night’s game at Phoenix, he at least knew that center Deandre Ayton will be back after missing the previous two games with left elbow soreness.
Redick said Luka Doncic (left leg contusion), Austin Reaves(mild left calf strain) and Rui Hachimura (right groin soreness) are day-to-day. Gabe Vincent (lower back tightness), however, is still out.
Redick said Doncic was injured when he was kneed by Clippers guard Bagdan Bogdanovic during Saturday night’s game at Intuit Dome.
Redick said the Lakers have noticed that Doncic, who leads the NBA in scoring (34.1) and is fourth in assists (8.8), gets hit in his lower leg a lot during games.
“It could just be the de-ce. I don’t know,” Redick said, alluding to the way Doncic changes speeds with the ball in his hands. “The way he uses his body? I don’t know. We’ll have to … We’re talking about looking into ways to potentially protect against these, so sort of like, collisions.”
Reaves has missed the last three games recovering from his injury. He was seen on the court shooting after practice Monday, leading to the media to ask Redick what it will take for his guard to get back on the court soon.
“I think given the nature of that area, I think it’s when he feels 100% confident and he doesn’t feel it hurting,” Redick said. “It’s fun, guys. It’s fun. It’s fun. It’s a fun day to talk about injuries.”
Redick said there was no real update on Hachimura’s injury, but that Ayton was a full participant in practice.
Ayton, who is second in the NBA in field-goal percentage (71%) and is averaging 15.3 points and 9.0 rebounds, was asked if he was playing against the Suns.
“Most definitely,” he said. “I’m straight. Most definitely.”
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