It’s time for the Lakers‘ first game after the sensational Luka Doncic trade. And don’t worry, they won’t need to travel far as they’ll be hosted by city rivals, the Clippers, at the newly opened Intuit Dome. While the Slovenian did express that he was “grateful for this amazing opportunity,” will they be able to count on their latest signee tomorrow after parting ways with Anthony Davis and Max Christie?

Well, if their recent injury report is anything to go by, then the LA Lakers might be missing two of their biggest players ahead of the anticipated derby game. So let’s find out.

Lakers Injury Report – will Luka Doncic make his debut against the Clippers?

In reality, the Lakers have traded one injured player for another as Luka Doncic is OUT of the Clippers game tomorrow. But you knew that, didn’t you? What you’re likely here for is to learn about LeBron James and his status. Well, the injury report submitted by the 22-season veteran’s team has him listed as PROBABLE, owing to the management of his calf injury.

But Lakers fans, let me tell you, it’s too early to panic!

The 40-year-old James, who still plays like someone 15 years younger, has been listed this way for the past few games. Even ahead of his last game against the Knicks, yes, the one with the Amy Schumer performance, the King was listed as such on the Lakers’ IR. And we all know what he did during the game. However, apart from the new yet unexpected superstar combo in LA, there are still a couple of key players missing the Clippers game. Here’s the full injury report: 

• Dorian Finney-Smith – QUESTIONABLE (Right shoulder; contusion)
• Gabe Vincent – QUESTIONABLE (Left knee; Contusion)
• Luka Doncic – OUT (Left Calf; Strain)
• Maxi Kleber – OUT (Right foot; Fracture)
• Christian Wood – OUT (Left Knee; Surgery Recovery)
• LeBron James – PROBABLE (Left foot; Injury Management)

So Luka Doncic isn’t the only new signee missing the Clippers game as Maxi Kleber is OUT too. His absence is owed to the right foot fracture he suffered in January, for which he had to undergo surgery. It’ll be a while before he makes his Lakers debut.

Christian Wood remains OUT as he continues his recovery from knee surgery. Whether he survives the trade deadline remains to be seen. Whereas, Cam Reddish was DOUBTFUL owing to personal reasons still unknown to us.

On the other hand, the Clippers have only listed Reddish’s namesake, Cam Christie, on their injury report. He is OUT with an ankle sprain. That said, let’s see what lineups both teams may field on Tuesday given their injuries.

Lakers vs Clippers—Predicted Starting Lineups and Depth Chart

This upcoming game will be the Lakers’ first without Anthony Davis. The Redick-led system will certainly miss him given he led them in all major stats, but assists before his departure. But having the King on the court will still give the Lakers faithful some peace of mind. Here’s how the Lakers might look tomorrow against the Clippers without AD or Max Christie among their ranks.

The Clippers have almost all their players available for the Lakers game tomorrow. On top of that, you Clippers fans may get to see the first of Patty Mills and Drew Eubanks in your team’s colors. This is what we think the Clippers side will look like against the Lakers:

The Clippers are in a very good position to beat the Lakers tomorrow. And it’s not only because they have virtually close to no absentees. Though injuries must be considered, we should also keep these teams’ recent head-to-head records in mind. In their last 10 games, the Clippers have beaten the Lakers 7 times! And this was while AD was on the Lakers’ roster, of course.

So, LeBron James will be fighting an uphill battle on Tuesday as his team takes on their local rival in the first of 4 games against them this year. The Lakers and LeBron need Luka back ASAP if they are to stand a chance in the shark tank aka the Western Conference!