Lakers Announce Deandre Ayton Injury Status for Spurs Game

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Feb 10, 2026 10:15 PM ET

The Los Angeles Lakers are in action on Tuesday in the second night of a back-to-back set. They host Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs at Crypto.com Arena. This matchup follows Monday night’s 119-110 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Deandre Ayton played 29 minutes on Monday against the defending champions. The 7-foot center logged six points and 10 rebounds, which was far from enough to help lift L.A. to victory.

Ayton has been dealing with a lingering knee injury. He sat out on Saturday against the Golden State Warriors due to right knee soreness. The Lakers listed Ayton as questionable again for Monday’s matchup against San Antonio.

Los Angeles Lakers center Deandre Ayton (5)© Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Apart from Ayton, L.A.’s stars are also dealing with respective injuries. Luka Doncic will miss his third straight game due to a hamstring issue. LeBron James (foot) and Austin Reaves (calf) were also ruled out ahead of the Spurs game. Marcus Smart (ankle) will not play either.

Head coach JJ Redick and the Lakers got more bad news right before tip-off. Ayton has now also been ruled out, which means L.A. will be down five starters against the Spurs. The Lakers announced via the injury report that Ayton is officially out with right knee soreness.

Among the entire starting unit, it was only Ayton who really had a chance to suit up on Tuesday night. He was a true game-time decision, but the Lakers have decided to err on the side of caution and have Ayton sit out as well.

Redick has no choice but to field a makeshift lineup against Wembanyama and Co. The Lakers will start Kobe Bufkin, Luke Kennard, Jake LaRavia, Rui Hachimura and Jaxson Hayes.

L.A. enters Tuesday’s game with a 32-20 record and fifth in the Western Conference. They will be back in action on Thursday in a home game against Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks. That will be the Lakers’ final game before the All-Star break.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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