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Lakers Lose Another Starter Amid Luka Doncic Injury News

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Paolo Songco | Last updated Oct 26, 2025 11:48 PM ET

The Los Angeles Lakers were already significantly undermanned heading into Sunday’s matchup against the Sacramento Kings with both Luka Doncic and LeBron James out with injuries. Unfortunately for L.A., they suffered another loss to its backcourt, with Gabe Vincent being forced to exit against the Kings.

James is a long-term injury for the Lakers as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer deals with a nerve injury that is expected to keep him out until at least mid-November. Doncic, on the other hand, was ruled out for the Sacramento game due to finger and leg injuries and is set to miss at least one week. The injury news came at a bad time for Doncic, who was having a strong start to his second season with the Lakers.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) during an NBA game. © Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Vincent has started all three games for the Lakers this season. Entering Sunday's contest, the 29-year-old averaged 4.0 points, 3.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.0 triples in 26.5 minutes per game.

Vincent, however, was forced to exit the game in the third quarter with an ankle issue. The 6-foot-3 point guard was not able to return after X-rays revealed that he had suffered a left ankle sprain. Vincent finished the game with three points, one rebound and an assist in 19 minutes of action. It remains to be seen how much time, if any, Vincent will be forced to miss because of this new injury.

Marcus Smart also left in the second half, but the good news is that he returned to the game after briefly leaving. The 31-year-old veteran reportedly had his right leg checked, but was ultimately cleared to play to finish out the game.

It was Austin Reaves who stole the show on Sunday, going off with a career-high 51 points on 12-of-22 shooting and 6-of-10 from distance. The 6-foot-5 shooting guard barely missed a triple-double with 11 rebounds and nine assists, leading the Lakers to a 127-120 win over Sacramento.

The Lakers improved to 2-1 after the victory. They are back in action on Monday, in the second night of a back-to-back set, to face the Portland Trail Blazers in a home game at Crypto.com Arena. Tipoff for that one is scheduled at 10:30 p.m. ET.

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

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