LOS ANGELES — Lakers starting forward Rui Hachimura is expected to be sidelined for one week with a calf injury that held him out of Tuesday night’s home game against the Detroit Pistons.
Hachimura sat out of Tuesday’s game because of right calf soreness that he started feeling coming out of Sunday’s home win against the Sacramento Kings.
He finished with 12 points, four rebounds and a pair of steals against the Kings but didn’t practice on Monday.
“He’ll miss a couple games,” Coach JJ Redick said. “Then we’ll get him ramped up and, hopefully, he’s playing again in the next week.”
Hachimura is averaging 12.7 points on 52.1% shooting (44.5% from 3-point range), starting in all 27 games he’s played.
With Hachimura out, Jake LaRavia was inserted into the starting lineup alongside Luka Doncic, Marcus Smart, LeBron James and Deandre Ayton.
The Lakers remain without guards Austin Reaves (left calf strain) and Gabe Vincent (lumbar back strain).
TURNAROUND
Exactly two years ago to the date on Tuesday, the Pistons ended their historic 28-game losing streak with a victory over the Toronto Raptors, eventually finishing the 2023-24 season with a league-worst 14-68 record.
And 732 days later, the Pistons’ franchise turnaround is on full display, with Detroit entering its game against the Lakers with the best record in the Eastern Conference.
The Pistons’ success has come on strength of having the league’s second-ranked defense, along with the continued emergence of All-NBA guard Cade Cunningham and starting center Jalen Duren taking a significant leap in his development.
“It’s a great test for our group to match their level of physicality and match how hard they play,” Redick said. “They’re a really good basketball team. [Pistons coach] J. B. [Bickerstaff] has done a fantastic job of just building an identity with that group.”
TWO-WAY PLAY
Two-way contract guard Nick Smith Jr. was once again in the Lakers’ first-half rotation on Tuesday after scoring 21 points against the Kings on Sunday.
It was his second-highest scoring game of the season, behind the 25 points he had in a Nov. 3 road win against the Portland Trail Blazers.
“We knew coming into the season that ball handling was one of the things that we didn’t necessarily have a ton of outside of our main two guys,” Redick said. “A guy with some wiggle, we need that. A guy that can create off the bounce, we need that. More shooting, we need that – mix all those things. He’s been great for us.”
REFLECTING ON 41
Similar to Redick, Bickerstaff can appreciate the toll the travel and movement of an 82-game NBA regular season can have on anyone, especially someone in their 40s.
So, with Lakers star LeBron James turning 41 on Tuesday, Bickerstaff reflected on James’ longevity in light of his advanced age.
“It is unbelievable, to be honest with you,” Bickerstaff said. “To think about all the things that those guys have to go through and have to do when the lights aren’t on just to be able to put themselves in position to do the things that they do at the level that they can do it. You have a ton of respect for those guys. And it’s pretty interesting, you think about – and it’s not [just him]. Obviously, LeBron is the oldest of them all, but Steph Curry, [Kevin Durant], Kawhi [Leonard], there’s a lot of guys that are at an older age now that are still playing and performing at a high level.
“Advancements in science [contribute to longevity], but their ability to do the extra things and treat this as not just a two-hour job when you show up for practice or show up for the game. You go back to how willing they are to take care of themselves [with] nutrition. Whether it’s stretching, yoga, all these things that they’re willing to do to make sure they can get on the court and perform at the level they still can is mind-blowing to me. Coming in the league 20 years ago now, you saw guys that if they made it to 10 years, they were lucky. And by the time they walked out of here, they weren’t walking the same as when they walked in. But to see these guys, to be able to play and still be as athletic and as explosive as LeBron is now, it’s phenomenal. But again, it’s just commitment to his work and to his craft.”