All of a sudden, the Lakers\u2019 upcoming contest against the Pacers looks like a much tougher game. Los Angeles is playing on the second night of a back-to-back and will be taking on Indiana without LeBron James, Deandre Ayton and Maxi Kleber.<\/p>\n
The trio was ruled out on Friday afternoon. The Lakers will now have to find a way to win without two of their starting players.<\/p>\n
While Maxi Kleber has missed the past two games with this back injury, James and Ayton are new additions to the injury report.<\/p>\n
Ayton exited LA\u2019s game against the Nuggets<\/a> with a knee injury after playing for just five minutes. Considering that the Lakers are playing the day after he got hurt, it\u2019s no surprise he will be unavailable.<\/p>\n While Ayton has been struggling as of late, he\u2019s been an important player for the Lakers. Ayton is averaging 12.6. points and 8.2 rebounds per game while starting in all 54 games he\u2019s participated in.<\/p>\n LeBron also got injured playing against the Nuggets.<\/p>\n He fell in the fourth quarter, hurting his elbow in the process. James was able to complete the game, but said his elbow felt \u201cpretty sore\u201d<\/a> during his postgame media availability. Now, he\u2019s officially been ruled out with a left elbow contusion.<\/p>\n LeBron\u2019s value cannot be overstated. He continues to be one of the team\u2019s best offensive producers, averaging 21.4 points on 50% shooting.<\/p>\n