Preview: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Phoenix Suns: Player props, injury report and prediction | NBA

The Los Angeles Lakers, 11-2 and holders of the best record in the NBA, visit the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center on Sunday in the final game of a seven-game Suns homestand.

Phoenix opened the season 1-5 and have won four of their last five since, while the Lakers arrive after three days off following a win at Milwaukee that left Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Collin Sexton with injury concerns.

Los Angeles Lakers vs. Phoenix Suns form and outlook

Form Guide (Last 5)

Los Angeles Lakers 11-2 · 1st in the West

WWWWW

121.6 PPG

112.6 Opp PPG

+9.0 Diff

3 days Rest

Phoenix Suns 5-6 · 11th in the West

WWLWW

109.8 PPG

106.2 Opp PPG

+3.6 Diff

2 days Rest

The Lakers sit first in the Western Conference standings on the back of a seven-game winning run, and their last five games have brought an average margin of nine points, with the narrowest win by five and four of the five played away from home.

Reaves scored a season-high 43 points against Detroit while Doncic missed that game, which showed that the Lakers can lean on a second creator when the first is unavailable, in a season that is the first since LeBron James left Los Angeles.

Phoenix's recovery has been less comfortable, as they let a 17-point lead slip against a short-handed Charlotte side on Thursday before closing out a 101-96 win, and their only defeat in the last five was a 122-96 home loss to San Antonio on Monday.

Devin Booker scored 30 points and the Suns forced 27 turnovers in that game, yet they were out-rebounded 64-43, a weakness that a team with the Lakers' size is well placed to test.

Over the full season the Lakers lead on efficiency, with an offensive rating of 121.6 against 113.8 for Phoenix, and they also shoot a better percentage from the field.

The Suns' counter is ball security and passing, since they turn the ball over three fewer times a game and average 27.2 assists to the Lakers' 24.7.

The defensive gap is narrower than the attacking one, with the Lakers' rating of 113.6 only four points per 100 possessions better than Phoenix's 117.6.

In this exact setting the Lakers have outscored opponents by 6.7 points a game on the road, compared with 0.9 for the Suns at home, which is the cleanest measure of how each side has performed in the situation it faces on Sunday.

Who is available for Lakers vs. Suns?

Four Lakers guards carry game-time decisions, with Doncic (right ankle), Reaves (left heel), Sexton (head) and Quentin Grimes (finger) all awaiting clearance, although Doncic reportedly woke up without pain after turning his ankle at Milwaukee and Reaves had negative X-rays on his left heel before further imaging.

The likely Lakers starters are Doncic, Reaves, Matisse Thybulle, Jake LaRavia and Walker Kessler, and Ziaire Williams would have a chance to start if Reaves cannot play.

Phoenix are healthier, with only centre Mark Williams ruled out until early February, and Booker, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Miles Bridges and Oso Ighodaro are the expected starters.

The Suns play at Denver the following night, a back-to-back on the NBA schedule, and Jordan Ott has spoken about managing the minutes of Booker and Brooks.

Lakers vs. Suns key matchups that could decide it

Key Matchups

The scoring duel

Luka Doncic LAL

VS

Devin Booker PHX

38.6 Doncic PPG

7.6 Doncic APG

25.5 Booker PPG

5.0 Booker APG

Across the last five team games, Doncic averages 39.3 points and Booker 26.6. Both teams build their attack around one creator, and Doncic carries the heavier passing load.

The battle on the glass

Walker Kessler LAL

VS

Miles Bridges PHX

10.8 Kessler RPG

67.5% Kessler FG%

7.3 Bridges RPG

44.4% Bridges FG%

Across the last five team games, Kessler averages 11.4 rebounds and Bridges 7.6. Kessler is the Lakers' leading rebounder, while Bridges leads a Suns side that was beaten on the boards on Thursday.

Doncic against Booker is the headline duel between the two leading scorers, and Doncic averages 2.6 more assists, which shows how much more of the Lakers' creation runs through one player, although Booker also had seven assists and three steals against Charlotte, so his influence is not limited to scoring.

Underneath, Kessler shoots 67.5% from the field and gives the Lakers a rim presence, while Bridges leads the Suns on the glass in a side that has struggled to hold its own on the boards, and both arrived this summer, Kessler from Utah in a trade for future first-round picks and Bridges from Charlotte in the deal that sent Grayson Allen and Royce O'Neale the other way.

Lakers vs. Suns player props to watch

Player Props to Watch

Devin Booker PHX

PointsOver 24.5

25.5 Season avg

26.6 Last 5 avg

11 GP

Booker plays 34.0 minutes a game as the focal point of the Suns' attack and scored 30 points on 12-of-20 shooting against Charlotte.

Walker Kessler LAL

ReboundsOver 9.5

10.8 Season avg

11.4 Last 5 avg

13 GP

Kessler averages 30.8 minutes and collected 11 rebounds at Milwaukee, while Phoenix lost the rebounding battle 64-43 to Charlotte on Thursday.

Luka Doncic LAL

PointsOver 35.5

38.6 Season avg

39.3 Last 5 avg

11 GP

Doncic plays 35.9 minutes and makes 5.5 threes a game, and Phoenix concede 116.1 points a game.

Lakers vs. Suns head-to-head record

Phoenix won the 2025-26 regular-season series 3-2, including two of the three meetings at their own arena.

The most recent meeting, a 101-73 Lakers win in April, is a poor guide because Doncic and Reaves missed it for Los Angeles and Booker and Jordan Goodwin sat out for Phoenix.

Doncic scored 38 points in the Suns' 125-108 win on 1 December, and Brooks scored 25 in a 132-108 win in Phoenix on 23 December, a game Doncic missed, and the Lakers' only win in the series away from home came by two points on 14 December.

Our Lakers vs. Suns prediction and betting tips

The Lakers have the better numbers at both ends, a seven-game winning run and a rest advantage, which should be enough in Phoenix even with their guard rotation still unsettled.

Phoenix's ball security and Thursday's recovery against Charlotte mean they should stay in touch, but the Lakers' size and efficiency look likelier to decide the final quarter.