The Los Angeles Lakers will be without their top scorer and the Trail Blazers might be, too, when the teams meet Saturday night in Portland.
Lakers star Luka Doncic was ruled out due to left groin soreness, while Trail Blazers star Deni Avdija was listed as doubtful because of a lower back strain.
Doncic, whose average of 33.6 points per contest is the best in the NBA, put up 39 points on Thursday as the Lakers lost 135-117 to the visiting Charlotte Hornets.
That came two games after he acknowledged groin soreness on Monday vs. the Sacramento Kings, though he scored 42 points in that contest and added 27 the next night against the Atlanta Hawks.
Doncic has played in 32 of the Lakers’ 39 games this season, though he has appeared in each of the past 11 games.
The Lakers also remain without second-leading scorer Austin Reaves, who has been sidelined since late December with a left calf strain. Deandre Ayton (knee) and Jaxson Hayes (hamstring) are questionable for Saturday.
Avdija played in each of the team’s first 40 games but is now in jeopardy of missing his third straight contest. The All-Star candidate sat out Portland’s 119-97 road loss against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday and the Blazers; 117-101 home triumph over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday.
Avdija leads the Trail Blazers in scoring (26.1 points per game) and ranks second in assists (6.9) and rebounding (7.1).
“The way Deni plays, he draws so much attention,” Portland interim coach Tiago Splitter said after the Thursday victory. “We had to do some stuff differently. We still miss Deni.
“Deni’s a big part of our team. We’re not sure when he’s coming back but hopefully it will be soon. We need him.”
Veterans Jerami Grant (Achilles) and Jrue Holiday (calf) are listed as questionable for Portland.
Grant missed 14 consecutive games before returning against the Hawks. The forward had 16 points in 23 minutes off the bench.
Holiday has played in three games since missing 27 in a row. The point guard had 12 points, four assists and three steals in 20 minutes against Atlanta.
–Field Level Media
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