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Heading into this season, the Los Angeles Lakers were already dealing with an injury to LeBron James. He was ruled out for at least four weeks with sciatica. Since then, injuries have continued to pile up, especially at the guard spot. Gabe Vincent was recently ruled out for two to four weeks with an ankle injury. The Lakers have also been without Luka Doncic for the last two games with finger and leg injuries. Ahead of a matchup with the Timberwolves, Doncic has already been ruled out of that game. Without Doncic and Vincent, Marcus Smart has had more on his plate. He played 31 minutes in a starting role against the Kings before being held out of their most recent game against the Trail Blazers. Smart will be out again, despite being listed as questionable. The Los Angeles Lakers Rule Marcus Smart Out for Game vs. Timberwolves According to Lakers insider Jovan Buha, Smart is out for their contest against the Timberwolves. On Tuesday night, he was listed as questionable with a right quad contusion. This is already the second game that Smart has missed this season. In his career, Smart has only played more than 60 games once since the 2019-20 season. His availability was a concern when they signed him in free agency. Over the summer, Smart told Dave McMenamin of ESPN what he was going to do as a member of the Lakers. “Just to be me. Come in and do what I do and that’s [being] a tenacious defender, just bringing the intensity that I bring, my leadership, my basketball IQ, as well. But just being the pest that I’ve always been.” In that same interview, Smart acknowledged that injuries have been a big part of his story as an NBA player. “The last two years for me was, in my eyes, a disappointment. Injuries kind of stopped me and held me back. But, like I told my wife and my family, everything happens for a reason.” The Lakers Won’t Have Marcus Smart Against the Timberwolves Without Smart, the Lakers will likely give more minutes to Bronny James and Dalton Knecht, as they did against the Trail Blazers. Minnesota will be coming into this game shorthanded as well, as Anthony Edwards is out two weeks with a hamstring strain, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania. Austin Reaves picked up the slack against Portland, scoring 41 points. He will have to take an even larger scoring load without Doncic and Smart available for this game in Minnesota. So far, the Lakers are 2-2 on the season. Smart has been a below-average player on offense so far this season, scoring just 7.7 points per game and shooting 14.3% from beyond the 3-point arc. His defense has been great, as he is seventh in the league in defensive rating, per NBA.com. As the Lakers progress throughout the season, health is going to be a continued storyline. James, Smart, Doncic, and Deandre Ayton all have poor injury histories over the last few years. Keeping those guys healthy will be the key to their season.
