Sports
Lakers suffer another key injury during loss to Pelicans
This was the time to move forward, the final game of 2023, the final game of a stretch where the Lakers played 14 of 19 games away from Los Angeles.
As this chapter on the Lakers’ season was set to close, coach Darvin Ham made a bit of a proclamation pregame in New Orleans. The Lakers were going to push forward with a new starting lineup — this time with Rui Hachimura as the team’s fifth starter.
“I think this lineup that you see tonight, we’re going to stick with for the foreseeable future,” Ham said.
It lasted eight minutes.
Another blow to the team’s quest for consistency combined with a short turnaround after an emotional loss to Minnesota on Saturday meant the Lakers’ calendar year ended with a 129-109 loss to the Pelicans.
Hachimura, who moved into the starting lineup for Cam Reddish (out because of a groin injury), had to leave Sunday’s game in New Orleans because of a calf injury, another hiccup for a team that’s back to .500 (17-17).
“It is what it is,” LeBron James said. “It is what our record is and we have to figure it out and get better, for sure.”
The record has to be particularly discouraging considering how James and Anthony Davis have played to this point, the two stars being plenty good enough while the supporting cast has varied and scuffled.
James, playing for the second straight game with an illness, scored 34 points — the 11th most by a 39-year-old in league history. Davis and Austin Reaves had 20 each, but the Pelicans shot better than 50% from the field on three-pointers.
Injuries, again, forced the reshuffling in the first place, the Lakers playing without Reddish and D’Angelo Russell (tailbone bruise). But the new plan had to be re-worked after Hachimura quickly left Sunday’s game.
He’ll undergo further evaluation in Los Angeles.
New Orleans Pelicans forward Larry Nance Jr., center, tries to block a pass between Lakers forward Taurean Prince, left, and forward Anthony Davis in the first half Sunday.
(Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)
Reaves, who the team has been reluctant to put back in the starting lineup, had to play with the group to start the second half. Reaves had 13 of his 20 points in the third.
But the Lakers, ultimately, looked too heavy-legged to respond to the Pelicans, who hung 42 points on L.A. in the first quarter without ever really slowing down.
The Lakers have are just 3-8 since winning the NBA’s first in-season tournament.
“Since the in-season tournament, we’ve been struggling,” Reaves said. “Health, injuries, sickness, we’ve kinda had some bad fortune there. But at the end of the day, that happens to everybody. But we have to look in the mirror and see what we can do to be better, what I can to do be better. And just get better.”
The team arrived in New Orleans after 3 a.m. Sunday following their loss in Minnesota. And while the league affirmed its ruling on James’ shot with his toe on the three-point line late, it reported missed calls on a goaltend and a charge that weren’t called against the Timberwolves.
Then the defense never physically bothered the motivated Pelicans, who last faced the Lakers in a 44-point rout in Las Vegas.
Zion Williamson scored 26 points, Brandon Ingram had 26 and CJ McCollum 22 for New Orleans, which trailed only for a single possession in the first quarter.
The Lakers now play 11 of their next 12 games in Los Angeles to start 2024.
“We’ve been a pretty good home team thus far and now we got to take advantage of it,” Davis said. “We get to sleep in our own beds, don’t have to worry about traveling. Our own resources. Get some practice time in and let guys get healthy. So it’s gonna be big for us to make this homestand a great one. We got to take advantage of it.”
Sports
Austin Reaves nearing return for Lakers as Luka Doncic remains out indefinitely with hamstring strain: report
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In early April, with just five games remaining in the regular season, the Los Angeles Lakers announced that star guard Luka Doncic would be sidelined at least until the NBA playoffs.
Doncic’s setback was a Grade 2 left hamstring strain, an MRI confirmed. The reigning NBA scoring champion sustained the injury during an April 2 game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Lakers also entered the playoffs without another key member of their backcourt, Austin Reaves.
The shorthanded Lakers upset the Houston Rockets in the opening game of their first-round Western Conference series Saturday. Ahead of Game 2 on Tuesday, the Lakers reportedly received a clearer update on the health of at least one of their injured stars.
Lakers guard Austin Reaves brings the ball up court against the Washington Wizards in Los Angeles on March 30, 2026. (Ryan Sun/AP)
Reaves, who was diagnosed with an oblique strain, appears to be progressing toward a return later in the first-round series if it extends to six or seven games. If the Lakers advance sooner, he could be on track to return for the Western Conference semifinals.
According to ESPN, Reaves recently returned to the practice court for 1-on-1 drills. The 27-year-old will still need to progress to 2-on-3 and then 5-on-5 work before he can be cleared for playoff action, but he appears significantly further along than Doncic, who remains out indefinitely.
Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers controls the ball against the Orlando Magic at the Kia Center on March 21, 2026. (Nathan Ray Seebeck/Imagn Images)
Doncic is unlikely to play in the first round, regardless of the series length. ESPN footage showed him on the practice court on Tuesday, though the six-time All-Star was not doing high-intensity work.
2025-26 NBA PLAYOFF ODDS: SPREADS, LINES FOR FIRST-ROUND SERIES
The Rockets, despite being widely favored in the opening round playoffs series, also contended with key injuries. Kevin Durant missed Game 1 with a knee contusion. He was cleared to play in Game 2 on Tuesday night.
Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. shoots the ball against the Lakers during Game 1 in the NBA playoffs at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on April 18, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
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LeBron James scored 19 points, while Luke Kennard led Los Angeles with 27 in Saturday’s win.
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Watching junior right-hander Fabian Bravo of Sun Valley Poly High pitch for the first time, there was something strangely familiar about his windup.
When he turned his back to reveal he was wearing No. 32, everything made sense.
He had to be a fan of Sandy Koufax, the 1960s Hall of Fame left-hander for the Dodgers.
Two friends sitting next to me refused to believe it.
“No way,” one said.
“Kids today have never heard of Sandy Koufax,” another piped in.
Only after Bravo threw a three-hit shutout to beat North Hollywood 3-0 was my belief vindicated.
“I come into the back with my arms and it’s a little bit like a Sandy Koufax kind of thing,” he said. “I wear 32 too. He was the starting pitcher for the Dodgers and was good in the World Series.”
Koufax was perfect-game good on Sept. 9, 1965, against the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium, striking out 14.
Bravo started learning about No. 32 when his parents would bring him to Dodger Stadium as a young boy.
“I always saw No. 32 retired on the wall,” he said. “Once I got to know him, I was able to see who he really was. I felt I could really copy him and get myself deeper into history.”
Bravo is no Koufax in terms of being a power pitcher. He’s 5 feet 10 and 140 pounds. Since last season, when he changed his windup to briefly emulate Koufax’s arms going above his head, he has a 12-3 record. This season he’s 3-1 with a 1.50 ERA.
“I saw his windup and he looked like he was calm and composed and I tried it. I felt more of a rhythm. I was able to calm down and pitch better,” he said.
After Bravo’s arms go up over his head in his windup, he also does a brief hesitation breathing in and out before throwing the ball toward home plate.
“My dad always taught me to breathe in, breathe out before I do anything,” he said.
Nowadays, teenagers seemingly don’t pay much attention to greats of the past, from old ballplayers to Hall of Fame coaches. Ask someone if they know John Wooden, kids today probably don’t. He did win 10 NCAA basketball titles coaching for UCLA. And who was Don Drysdale? Only a Dodger Hall of Fame pitcher alongside Koufax from Van Nuys High.
Bravo is fortunate he’s seen Dodger broadcasts mentioning Koufax at the stadium and on TV, motivating him to learn more, which led to seeing his windup on YouTube.
His older brother also wore No. 32, so no one was getting that uniform number other than a Bravo brother at Poly.
There is another Bravo set to arrive in the fall. Julian Bravo will be a freshman left-handed pitcher and wants No. 32.
“While I’m there he’s going to have to find a new number,” Fabian Bravo said.
Julian might also want to help his big brother gain a few pounds at the dinner table.
“My brother takes food from me,” he said.
As for recognizing Bravo’s Koufax connection, it was No. 32 that provided the clue. How many pitchers in the 1970s were choosing No. 32? A lot. And it’s great to see a 17-year-old in 2026 paying tribute to one of the greatest pitchers ever.
Emulating Koufax is hard, but forgetting him is unforgivable.
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Eli Manning retired in 2019 and missed out in his first year of Hall of Fame eligibility in 2025. He was passed over again earlier this year but still fired back at a fan who claimed one of his contemporaries was the better quarterback.
On Tuesday, a social media user floated a theory about former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. Ryan, who now oversees football operations as the team’s president, last played in an NFL game in 2022. He announced his retirement in 2024, making him eligible for Hall of Fame consideration beginning in 2028.
“Matt Ryan was a better QB than Eli Manning… people just worship rings. Agree or nah,” the post read.
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New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning greets Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan after their game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on Oct. 22, 2018. (Jason Getz/USA TODAY Sports)
Manning caught wind of the suggestion and weighed in, pointing to the two Super Bowl-winning teams he was part of during his standout run with the New York Giants.
“I will ponder this while I play with my rings…,” Manning wrote in a quote-tweet.
Ryan’s statistical production surpasses Manning’s, at least on paper. He was named NFL MVP in 2016, an honor Manning never earned. Ryan is also the most accomplished player in Falcons history and finished his career with more than 62,000 regular-season passing yards, compared with Manning’s 57,023.
NFC head coach Eli Manning leads a huddle during a practice session before the NFL Pro Bowl at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on Feb. 4, 2023. (Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Both quarterbacks were selected to four Pro Bowls, but the key difference lies in championships. Manning won the Super Bowl in 2007 and 2011, while Ryan reached it once but fell short. Manning threw for a single season career-best 4,933 during the run leading up to the second Super Bowl title.
Ryan threw for 284 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions to help the Falcons build a 25-point lead in the championship game — a matchup remembered for the New England Patriots engineering the largest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan passes the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the second half at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., on Jan. 2, 2022. (Rich Barnes/USA TODAY Sports)
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The Falcons have reached the Super Bowl twice in franchise history, first in 1998, but the team is still chasing its first elusive championship.
The Giants marked their 100th season in 2024, winning four Super Bowls over the franchise’s century-long history.
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