The Los Angeles Lakers will participate in the knockout round of the NBA’s first in-season tournament on Tuesday when they host Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns. It could be an entertaining game. It will not only be a matchup of two potential championship contenders but will also feature two of this era’s greatest players, LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
The Lakers are incrementally building momentum. They have won nine of their last 13 games and are getting healthier. Forward Jarred Vanderbilt made his regular-season debut on Saturday after dealing with heel bursitis for several weeks. Rui Hachimura was cleared to play following a nasal fracture he sustained last month.
Hachimura didn’t play on Saturday against the Houston Rockets, but head coach Darvin Ham said he will almost certainly take the court on Tuesday.
Darvin Ham says “in all likelihood” Rui Hachimura will play Tuesday against PHX. He practiced in a black face mask protecting his nasal fracture today.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 4, 2023
Since arriving in a trade last January, Hachimura has provided L.A. instant offense and some stretches of effective defense off the bench. The team will need that to win the in-season tournament, not to mention the NBA championship this summer.