Is LeBron James Playing Tonight vs Nuggets? Lakers’ Injury Report, Depth Chart, and More Ahead Of Game 1

The Los Angeles Lakers are in for a rematch of their last season’s playoff exit with the Denver Nuggets. Nikola Jokic’s squad enters the game resurgent for a championship run, while LeBron James’ Lakers enter the contest with lopsided chances. Currently, the Lakers have an 8-0 record against Denver, ranging from the two teams’ last season game from the 22-23 campaign (January 9 2023 to March 2, 2024.)

Now, as many cite Lakers crafting a similar exit route to the previous season, the franchise has plenty on their platter to worry about for the first game. According to the latest injury report updates, LeBron James and Anthony Davis are deemed “probable“ for the 1st playoff game against Denver. Both the players deal with recurring injuries as AD deals with low back soreness and James with a left ankle concern (peroneal tendinopathy).

LeBron James, for the majority of the season, has seen his name on the Lakers’ injury report. Regardless, he played out 71 games this season, (+2 from the IST Finals and Play-in), the most in his latest 7-year stretch. With that, there is an anticipation that James can see a green light to play near the tip-off.

However, the Lakers would still be prying for a win undermanned. As they continue to miss Jarred Vanderbilt (foot sprain) and Christian Wood’s (surgery) important presence on the defensive end, the Lakers have also cited Jalen Hood-Schifino (surgery) and Cam Reddish (sprain) as “out” for the game.

For the Ball Arena team, they will have their key players, Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Aaron Gordon on the floor. They have Vlakto Cancar (disabled player for the season) and Collin Gillespie (knee) on their injury report.

LeBron James and Lakers eye a late-game change vs Denver

The Lakers, despite the Nuggets’ dominance over them, have managed to keep games close. One of the biggest factors in their struggles has been the late-game on-court decisions. With that, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Darvin Ham are eyeing a late-game change in their approach.

When pitting Davis’s size against Jokic, the Finals MVP tends to dish the ball out to his teammates. Something the Lakers have struggled to contain. With that, Ham hints at a possible continuation of pitting Rui Hachimura against Jokic.

Hachimura was seen defending Jokic at several crucial stops in their recent games. While it did not culminate in the win, Ham claims that the team needs to make thought-out late-game decisions to complement the matchup. Moreover, behind the Lakers’ confident run during the season-long struggles, Ham thinks that the squad is in a better position to deploy subtle tactical changes, allowing them to redeem last season’s kick-out.