Is Kyrie Irving playing tonight? Latest injury report for Lakers vs. Mavs

In an exciting Western Conference matchup, the Dallas Mavericks host the Los Angeles Lakers tonight. Each team enters this game with a winning streak to defend. The Lakers are one game removed from winning the NBA's inaugural In-Season tournament championship and have won their last four.

As for the Mavericks, they have won their last three games and are fresh off a regular-season win against the Memphis Grizzlies. Unfortunately, for the Mavericks, not only is this game a back-to-back, but one of their best players is out.

No injury update for Kyrie Irving for tonight's game against Lakers

Now, according to the injury report, there's no official update on Kyrie Irving's status yet. However, it may be safe to assume the Mavs will be short-staffed against the Lakers, even despite Kyrie's status. Aside from Irving, Tim Hardaway, Josh Green, Grant Williams, and Maxi Kleber were all out for yesterday's Mavericks game agaisnt the Grizzlies. Tonight, Hardaway, Williams, Kleber, Jones Jr, (left in the first quarter of yesterday's game) and Irving are all listed as game-time decisions.

The Mavs offical diagnosis for Irving is a right heel contusion. Irving suffered this injury when his teammate Dwight Powell fell and landed on top of him during the Mavericks game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday. Before tip off yesterday, Jason Kidd told Grant Afseth, Mavericks beat writer, that there was no update or timeline for Irving.

This season, Irving averages 23.0 points, 5.2 assists, and 3.9 rebounds and is the Mavericks' second-leading scorer. After the injury, Irving posted to Twitter and ensured his fans that he will be fine.

In an insanely competitive Western Conference, a third-place Mavericks team can only survive without Irving for so long. That being said, hopefully, Kyrie Irving returns sooner rather than later.

One thing is for certain, with Kyrie out, the Mavericks will need to rely heavily on their bench if they intend to stay competitive in the West. Jaden Hardy, Dante Exum, and Derick Lively all impressed against the Grizzlies last night. Hopefully, with Doncic's help, those guys can continue to be productive.