The Los Angeles Lakers will head to central Florida for the first of a four-game road trip, beginning on Monday as they prepare to take on the Orlando Magic.
The Lakers will seek their 44th win of the season. In the process, they will look to snap their two-game losing skid and get a win over the Magic. The Magic, on the other hand, will look to sweep the season series over the Lakers, who they defeated in Los Angeles in late November.
A lot is at stake for both teams, who will want to enter the playoffs on the right foot and get the best seed possible. As we enter this game, the Lakers are 43-27 and the fourth seed in the Western Conference. The Magic are 33-38 and the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Magic are two games out of the seventh spot and 7.5 games back of the sixth spot.
Monday's matchup will mean a lot for L.A., which enters this game with two of its top forwards, LeBron James and Rui Hachimura, on the injury report.
James is listed as probable and Hachimura is listed as questionable.
While that is the case, James will play and start for the Lakers. Hachimura will also play but come off the bench.
The two both returned to the court on Saturday against the Chicago Bulls. Although the game and their play did not go as planned, it was great to see them on the court.
James was subpar by his standards in his return after missing two weeks with his left groin injury. The 40-year-old tallied 17 points on 7-of-16 shooting from the field, six rebounds, four assists, five turnovers and three steals across 31 minutes.
Despite the rust, James emerges from the contest without suffering a setback and will return to action Monday, though the Lakers do have a back-to-back during their upcoming four-game road trip -- Wednesday in Indiana and Thursday in Chicago.
As for Hachimura, he will also be in the lineup. His return was not ideal, as he tallied five points on 2-of-6 shooting from the field, two rebounds, and one steal across 18 minutes.
The Lakers will likely continue to manage the forward's availability ahead of the playoffs, as Hachimura said postgame that he, "Can't really get back to 100 percent right away."
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This story was originally published March 24, 2025 at 2:53 PM.