When the lights went on and the marquee stars were shelved, the real story for the Los Angeles Lakers quietly wrote itself. While Austin Reaves exploded for 51 points and carried the offense, it’s DeAndre Ayton’s unassuming presence in the paint and his sudden back-spasm absence that might become the unspoken barometer of this team’s playoff viability.

The Minnesota Timberwolves travel to Los Angeles looking to send the Lakers to their second straight home loss to start the NBA season.

With Luka Doncic and LeBron James out injured, not to mention guards Marcus Smart and Gabe Vincent, it’s felt a little like Austin Reaves against the world when watching the Lakers’ offense. Other teams are loading up on him and pressuring him all over the court, and that is taking a physical toll.

After returning from the LA Lakers’ injury list last Friday, Luka Doncic immediately powered them to a 117-112 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. Without a doubt, the Slovenian has been on another level this season,

Deandre Ayton has been downgraded to questionable with his back spasms The next six weeks are going to be a feeding frenzy unlike anything the sport has ever seen. That includes the jobs that have just opened,

Deandre Ayton (back spasms) has been downgraded to out for tonight vs. Miami, the Lakers say. Twitter This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: No Deandre Ayton on Sunday due to back spasms