LOS ANGELES — The Phoenix Suns won’t have to deal with Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James on Sunday afternoon at Crypto.com Arena, but there’s still Luka Doncic.
James has been ruled out with a left groin strain he suffered in last week’s loss at defending NBA champion Boston that has kept him sidelined the last three games, but Doncic (right ankle sprain) is available for the fourth and final Suns-Lakers matchup.
Lakers coach JJ Redick said before Sunday’s game that James is “ramping” and is “day-to-day.”
Acquired in a blockbuster deal that sent Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks, Doncic didn’t play in Friday’s loss at Denver to end a four-game road trip after scoring 45 points Thursday against the Bucks, who won by 20 over the Lakers, 126-106.
Doncic has had his share of epic performances against the Suns going back to Game 7 of the 2022 Western Conference semifinals when he scored 35 points, going 6-of-11 from 3, in leading the Mavs to a 123-90 stunner in Phoenix. The Suns won a franchise-best 64 games in posting the NBA’s best record, but the Mavs, led by Doncic, put an abrupt end to that special season.
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The five-time first-team All-NBA selection dropped 50 points and 15 assists on the Suns in a 128-114 Christmas victory for Dallas last season. Doncic went 8-of-16 from distance in Phoenix.
Sunday will be Doncic’s first game against the Suns as a member of the Lakers.
Phoenix is 2-1 against the Lakers this season, but it hasn’t played them since Nov. 26 in a 127-100 home win. They were each 10-7 at the time, but their seasons have taken different turns.
The Suns (31-36) are 11th in the West fighting for a play-in spot while the Lakers (40-25) are fifth, trailing Houston (42-25) and Memphis (42-25) for the third and fourth seeds in the conference, respectively.
“We had high expectations,” Suns point guard Tyus Jones said after Friday’s game. “We held ourselves to a high standard as well. The season hasn’t gone as planned, but at the same time, there’s still season left and there’s still postseason ball ahead and that’s what we’re chasing and trying to achieve.”
Phoenix is coming off a 122-106 home win Friday over Sacramento to end a two-game skid.
“Just attention to detail,” Suns rookie Oso Ighodaro said after Friday’s game. “Playing with some desperation. I thought we did that tonight and that’s what we need to do down the stretch.”
Rui Hachimura (left patellar tendinopathy) and Maxi Kleber (right foot surgery recovery) are out as well for the Lakers while Jaxson Hayes (right knee contusion), Dorian Finney-Smith (left ankle injury management) and Gabe Vincent (left knee injury management) are available.
Lakers rookie Dalton Knecht (back soreness) is available.
Suns guard Grayson Allen is ruled out for a third straight game as he has a left foot strain. Nick Richards is available after missing two straight games with a right ankle sprain, while Monte Morris is out with low back injury management.
The Suns are 1 1/2 games behind Dallas for the 10th seed in the West and final play-in slot. They trail Sacramento by 2 1/2 games for the ninth seed.
The ninth seed plays against the 10th seed in play-in semifinals with the winner playing at the 7-8 loser for the eighth and final seed in the playoffs. The Suns are six games behind the Clippers for the eighth seed, but they swept the season series against them, 4-0.
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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