Luka Doncic has been ruled out for the Warriors clash, Luke Kennard is on hold

The Los Angeles Lakers continue their homestand until the All-Star break with a showdown against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday. But, as has been the case this season, they will be in short supply. Luka Dončić suffered a hamstring injury during the Lakers’ win against the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday, and he was officially off against the Warriors. However, there is a chance for a new addition Luke Kennard could make his debut for the Lakers.

The trade between the Lakers and the Hawks was finalized late Thursday night, with Luke Kennard officially listed as questionable on the team’s injury report amid the pending trade. In addition to Luka Doncic being ruled out, rookie Adou Thiero is also ruled out as he continues to recover from a knee injury.

Doncic’s injury happened near the end of the first half against the 76ers. He left the game and was eventually sent off after halftime. Rui Hachimura started the second half in his place. At the time of his exit, he had 10 points, four rebounds and two assists in 16 minutes. He has dealt with various injury issues this season, but still leads the NBA with 33.4 points.

In Kennard’s case, the Lakers got a shooter in their only deal at the trade deadline. While the trade was not yet official during JJ Redick’s pregame press conference for the 76ers game, he was able to speak at length after the game about what Kennard will bring to the lineup.

“He’s one of the best shooters in the NBA. I’m going to encourage him to shoot more and not take shots,” Redick said. “But I think one of the underrated parts of his game is his ability to move and create other actions and move the basketball. And you’ve seen that now on a number of his stops, where you can start the offense with movement off the ball and he’ll make the right play and kind of start the offense. So he’s going to be a corner threat and we’re going to be an on-ball threat.”

The Lakers are currently in fifth place in the Western Conference standings at 31-19 and have won two straight games. They are in the midst of a five-game stretch leading up to All-Star weekend.