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The OKC Thunder will look to tie their season series with the LA Lakers at the Crypto.com Arena on Monday. The marquee clash will be the fourth and final meeting between the teams. OKC is leading the West with a 42-18 record, while LA is 10th with a 33-29 record.
Despite their mediocre season, the Lakers have been solid against the Thunder. In their previous matchup at the same venue, LA had a 112-105 win, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis coming up big. LeBron had 25 points, seven rebounds and six assists on 12-of-20 shooting, while Davis had 27 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.
Shai Gilegeous-Alexander had 24 points on 9-of-19 shooting, but he seemingly struggled with a knee issue. Jalen Williams had 25 points on 10-of-18 shooting. The Thunder didn't get enough contributions from anyone else, resulting in their loss.
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OKC Thunder vs. LA Lakers injury reports for Mar. 4
OKC Thunder injury report
The Thunder only have Jaylin Williams on their injury report. He's day-to-day with a knee injury.
LA Lakers injury report
The Lakers have seven players on their injury report. Colin Castleton (wrist), Jarred Vanderbilt (mid-foot), Gabe Vincent (knee) and Christian Wood (knee) are ruled out.
Anthony Davis is probable (Achilles) and LeBron James (ankle) are probable and questionable, respectively.
OKC Thunder vs. LA Lakers starting lineups and depth charts for March 4
OKC Thunder starting lineup and depth chart
The Thunder are expected to play their usual starters. Josh Giddey and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will share the ball-handling duties. Meanwhile, Luguentz Dort, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren will be on the frontcourt.
LA Lakers starting lineup and depth chart
The Lakers are not expected to make changes to their starting lineup. LeBron James and Anthony Davis are on the injury report but are likely to play. Taurean Prince and Jaxson Hayes are the likeliest candidates to replace them if they do not start.
D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura will likely be the other three starters.
OKC Thunder vs. LA Lakers key matchups
The LA Lakers have wisely used effective defensive schemes against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Co. in their past matchups. The Thunder, meanwhile, have struggled to do so. This game will likely play out based on those duels.
The first is between LeBron James and Luguentz Dort, who has been excellent against stars and disruptive. He got the better of Kevin Durant on Sunday. If Dort can find the same success against LeBron, OKC will have a solid shot at winning.
The other battle is between Cam Reddish and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. With Jarred Vanderbilt out, Reddish will likely guard SGA for most of the contest.
He's an excellent screen navigator who is quite disruptive in throwing off the opposing team's best perimeter player. If he can hold SGA from having another 30-point outing, the Lakers will be in the driver's seat.
The final matchup is between the bigs. Anthony Davis has dominated Chet Holmgren with his size and experience in three previous matchups. However, Holmgren continues to learn and grow with each game and will look to make things tough for his counterpart on both ends.
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