The Los Angeles Lakers will be hosting the Utah Jazz for a preseason game on Thursday night at the Honda Center in Los Angeles, Calif. The game will begin at 10 p.m. PT, and live stream info can be found below (free for subscribers).
Lakers have played three games so far in the preseason, winning one over the Denver Nuggets but lost both games against the Golden State Warriors. The corresponding scores were
Utah Jazz have also played three winning games, where they defeated Portland Trailblazers in the first two games, and Los Angeles Clippers in the third game. The corresponding scores were 92-73, 109-105, 102-89.
The Lakers said point guard Steve Nash injured his back carrying bags Wednesday.
Coach Byron Scott said the team was still gathering information about the nature of the injury, but Nash isn't likely to play today against Jazz, according to ESPN.
Nash said this summer that he believes this season - his 19th - will be his last.
On Tuesday, Scott said indirectly that he may end up starting Jeremy Lin at point if Nash continues to be sidelined.
"I haven't got there yet. And in a couple weeks, if the situation is the same, that's probably the type of way that I have to go."
However, Jeremy Lin confirmed that he won't play today due to the sprained ankle, but he's shooting for Sunday, according to Mike Trudell of Lakers.com. This will be the second straight game that the 26-year-old will miss.
With Nash, Lin and Clarkson out on Thursday, Los Angeles will start Veteran Ronnie Price at point guard.
For Kobe Bryant's game, Coach Scott told Baxter Holmes of ESPN that he and Bryant have reached an agreement on the number of points that Bryant will play to reach a certain number of points.
The Utah Jazz seem to be playing much better than anticipated, after beating the Trailblazers and the Warriors, but rookie coach Quin Snyder quickly quelled expectations of extended smooth sail during the regular season.
"It's just preseason," Synder said, according to Salt Lake Tribune. "The games get much harder when they start to count."
The two wins over Trailblazers can easily be explained as Portland's starters played about 20 minutes in each game and their deep reserves took over, taking a lead until Utah overcame a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit.
Unfortunately, the preseason games will not be available online, but will be once the regular season begins on October 28 through NBA League Pass.
