Tonight’s impact: Lakers SF LeBron James (groin) and PF Kyle Kuzma (hip) are out.

Tonight’s impact: Lakers SF LeBron James (groin) and PF Kyle Kuzma (hip) are out.

NBA

Tonight’s impact: Lakers SF LeBron James (groin) and PF Kyle Kuzma (hip) are out.

Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Google Plus

The Lakers and 76ers haven’t faced each other in 14 months, and Philadelphia has put together quite the squad during that time.

Familiar foe Joel Embiid has been on a tear this season, ranking sixth in the NBA in scoring, third in rebounds and seventh in blocks. The Lakers need no reminder of his post-dominating, foul-drawing ways, as he averaged nearly 40 points in two games against them last year.

Plus, Ben Simmons continues to be a nightly triple-double threat, dishing out the league’s third-most assists. J.J. Redick is having a career year in Philly’s handoff-heavy offense. And new import Jimmy Butler is one of the game’s best two-way threats.

This would be a heavyweight matchup with both teams at full strength. Considering their shorthanded squad, the Lakers will need to be especially locked in to take out one of the league’s most talented rosters.

LeBron will miss his 17th consecutive game on Tuesday due to a strained left groin that he suffered on Christmas Day. After participating in partial practices recently, the Lakers are optimistic that he can return on Thursday.

Kuzma has been ruled out due to a strained left hip that held him out of the prior game, while Josh Hart will suit up despite dealing with knee tendinitis.

Michael Beasley will once again draw the start in place of Kuzma. In the previous game, Beasley logged 26 minutes and contributed 28.5 DraftKings points. He makes for an exceptional source of value there at just $3,800.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has benefited from Hart being less than 100 percent, and there’s a good chance he’ll continue to exceed 30 minutes. Caldwell-Pope supplied 36 DraftKings points in Sunday’s win against the Suns, but he’ll face a tougher matchup on Tuesday vs. the Sixers.

With Lonzo Ball (ankle) out past the All-Star break, Brandon Ingram has seen his assist rate climb to 15.9%, while his +3.8% usage rate increase leads all rotation players with LeBron, Kuzma and Ball off the court this season.

The Lakers have also elected to start 21-year-old Ivica Zubac in each of the last two games, and he’s exceeded his salary-based expectations in each outing. He exploded for a season-high 52.5 DraftKings points on Sunday and has registered a FantasyLabs +7.52 Plus/Minus over his last 10 games.

Rajon Rondo rounds out the appealing options for the Lakers, as he has leveraged heavy playing time into three straight games with double-digit assists. All five Lakers players enter the cash-game conversation, but they will face stiffer competition against a Sixers side that returns Joel Embiid and Jimmy Butler.

The Sixers are currently favored by 7.5 points on the road, but the Lakers have surprisingly fared well on defense since LeBron’s injury, ranking fifth in the league in that span.