The Lakers will be down another starter on Tuesday as Rui Hachimura has been ruled out for the contest against the Pistons with right calf soreness.
He joins Austin Reaves (left calf strain) and Gabe Vincent (lumbar back strain) as Lakers currently sidelined.
This was foreshadowed a bit on Monday when head coach JJ Redick noted that Hachimura did not practice. Redick said he was “banged up,” but the team
did not think it was anything serious or long-term.
Rui recently missed a game against the Clippers with groin soreness as well.
As the tweet notes, the good news from practice and the injury report is that Jaxson Hayes is cleared for his return against Detroit.
Honestly, Whac-A-Mole feels like a pretty apt description right now.
It’s rare for a team to be fully healthy for any real length of time in the modern NBA, but the way the Lakers have welcomed a player back to the starting lineup or rotation only to lose someone else has been particularly frustrating.
This also means yet another lineup change. Jake LaRavia and Jarred Vanderbilt are the likeliest options to step into the lineup while Dalton Knecht very well could see more minutes in the rotation after the injury as well.
Again, frustrating is the word that keeps popping up in these scenarios because the Lakers can’t get any run with a unit together, even if it isn’t their preferred one. The constant shuffling and shifting really make it hard to build chemistry within starting lineups.
But as is the nature of the NBA in 2025, where injuries feel more prevalent than ever.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.
