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The Los Angeles Lakers return to Crypto.com Arena, capped off by a thrilling comeback win against Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night.  Luca Doncic showed no rust as he scored 44 points in his return to action for the Lakers.  Austin Reaves seemed to have simmered down a bit in this contest but still delivered with 21 points of his own.  DeAndre Ayton had 9 points before sitting out the in the second half due to back spasms.   Marcus Smart also made his return to the line-up, contributing 12 points in his starting role. 

The Miami Heat hope to get back on the winning track tonight but may find that a tough task if star guard Norman Powell remains sidelined due the groin injury that has kept him out of the rotation for the Heat’s last two contests.  If Powell can’t go, Coach Erik Spoelstra will have to rely heavily on the play of forward Bam Adebayo.  Adebayo is having a great year, averaging 23 points a game along with 9 rebounds and will be coming off of a 31 point performance against the San Antonio Spurs. 

The Lakers have had their struggles defensively this season and will hopefully get some key contributions from bench players such as Jarred Vanderbilt and Dalton Knecdt.  Jake LaRavia has been an absolute gem for the Lakers, averaging 10 points in his reserve role.  The Heat will try and leverage their top-rated offense to exploit the Lakers interior defense with Adebayo’s size and athleticism. Like the Lakers, the Heat will need their reserve players to step up and are hoping that Simone Fonteccio can  summon up some consistent production for them similar to his 13 point average tonight.

With both teams being shorthanded, this contest will come down to the team that wants it more.

Tip off is tonight at 6:30 p.m. at Crypto.com Arena.

Lakers Projected Starting Line-Up:

Luka Doncic (G)

Austin Reaves (G)

Marcus Smart (G/F)

Rui Hachimura (F)

DeAndre Ayton (C)

Heat Projected Starting Line-Up

Davion Mitchell (G)

Pelle Larsson (G)

Andrew Wiggins (F)

Kel’el Ware (F)

Bam Adebayo (C)   

Lakers Projected Injury Report:

LeBron James (Out – sciatica)

Gabe Vincent (Out – left ankle sprain)

Maxi Kleber (Out- abdominal muscle strain)

Adou Thiero (Out – left knee surgery recovery)

DeAndrey Ayton (Probable – back spasms)

Heat Projected Injury Report:

Tyler Herro (Out – left ankle surgery)

Kasparas Jakucionis (Out – right groin strain)

Terry Rozier (Out – Administrative, not with team)

Norman Powell (Questionable – right groin strain)