The Los Angeles Lakers are tasked with facing one of the NBA's best defenses in the Detroit Pistons in the first of their four-game road trip on Sunday, Nov. 8. They'll have the added challenge of doing so without the driving force of their offense.
Luka Dončić has been ruled out with lower back tightness, the team announced. Dončić was listed as questionable on Saturday, one day after the leading MVP candidate dropped a season-high 53 pointsat home against the Portland Trail Blazers.
It's a blow to the Lakers (8-2), who will be without Dončić's 40.1 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.7 assists per night in nine games played this season. He's missed one other game with back tightness.
Detroit (6-2), meanwhile, has given up an average of 101.8 points per
game, fewest in the league.
Amid Dončić's historic stretch of seven consecutive 35-plus point games, the last four of which he's scored at least 40, head coach JJ Redick was asked if there was any danger in relying too much on the two-time scoring champion.
"Part of planning and team building and playing an 82-game season is that you're constantly assessing and trying to be better," Redick said on Friday. "... Let's say you're running a nine-man rotation or 10-man rotation. It's rare that you have each guy playing great. The goal is for each guy to play great, but that just doesn't happen so you're constantly tending to things. It's just the NBA.
" ... We have to rely on Luka because he's our best player, just like every other team relies on their best player. We still have to coach everyone else and coach the team."
The Lakers could be choosing to be proactive with getting rest for Dončić, as they travel to Atlanta for the second night of a back-to-back on Monday.
Luka Dončić injury history
Dončić does have a history of back injuries during his career. Before this season, he was most recently listed with a back injury in March 2025. He was also listed with back-related injuries during the 2019, 2021 and 2024 seasons.
Where does Luka Dončić rank among NBA's best?
Dončić entered his third season with the Lakers as the unquestioned leader. He was ranked No. 4 on USA TODAY Sports' top 100 player rankings ahead of the 2026-27 season and is currently No. 1 on Lorenzo Reyes' MVP power rankings.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is Luka Dončić playing tonight? Injury update on Lakers star vs. Pistons
