Los Angeles Lakers Blog – Page 36 – NBA Blog

Larry Nance Jr out four weeks with knee injury

Los Angeles Lakers forward Larry Nance Jr., who suffered an injury to his left knee December 20 at Charlotte, was examined prior to Sunday’s game by team physician Dr. David McAllister of UCLA Health. The diagnosis is a bone bruise.

Nance Jr. is expected to be out approximately four weeks.

The Lakers are 12-22 this season, which is the 11th best record in the Western conference.

The team’s leading scorer this season has been guard Louis Williams, averaging 18.7 ppg. Williams has come off the bench for all 34 of his games this year.

Larry Nance, Jr knee injury update

Los Angeles Lakers forward Larry Nance, Jr., who suffered an injury to his left knee in last night’s game in Charlotte, had an MRI exam today in Miami. Results showed a bone bruise, which will keep Nance, Jr. out indefinitely, but further results were inconclusive due to swelling in the knee. He will be re-examined by team physician Dr. David McAllister of UCLA Health on Sunday in Los Angeles, and an update will be given at that time.

Luke Walton reflects on Craig Sager

Whenever Luke Walton turned on a nationally televised NBA game, the Lakers coach did not just tune in to watch a star player or scout an opponent. Walton also wanted to see sideline reporter Craig Sager.

“Part of the fun and entertainment of what we do is seeing Craig in his crazy suits. He was phenomenal at his job,” Walton said. “He brought something every night he was on TV.”

So it was no surprise when the Lakers and the NBA community were in mourning Thursday over the passing of Sager, 65, who had spent the past two years fighting cancer. All NBA teams will observe a moment of silence in Sager’s memory, including when the Lakers (10-18) play the Philadelphia 76ers (6-19) on Friday at Wells Fargo Center.

“I can’t imagine how hard that has got to be, to put on that face and come and do the job that you love knowing that you’re not at your best,” Walton said. “You’re still out there fighting that fight and not letting it beat you. He’s not just staying home all day. He’s out there still living his life as long as he can. It’s incredible. He’s a strong, strong man.”

— OC Register

Lakers on six game losing streak

If only the Lakers could address their issues as soon as Nick Young shook his rust off.

For the first time in nearly two weeks, the Lakers fielded their starting backcourt that played a large part in their offense quickly becoming one of the NBA’s most prolific. But the Lakers showed in their 118-112 loss to the New York Knicks on Sunday at Staples Center that it will take more than D’Angelo Russell building his rhythm again to stop the team’s six-game losing streak.

Russell admittedly “felt out of rhythm” as he had three points on 1-of-8 shooting and four turnovers with a minute restriction (18) that included sitting out in the fourth quarter. Russell could shake off that rust when the Lakers (10-16) play against the Sacramento Kings (8-15) on Monday at Golden 1 Center to open a seven-game trip. Young might build off of his 15-point effort on 6-of-11 shooting despite not even completing any games of 3-on-3 in Saturday’s practice.

But the Lakers (10-16) will also have to fix a poor defense that Lakers forward Julius Randle called “embarrassing” for understandable reasons.

— Orange County Register

Quick Take: Despite the recent losing streak, the Lakers are in 9th place in the West, which isn’t that bad considering how young the Laker squad is and the injuries they’ve dealt with so far this season. Above them in the West standings in 8th place are the Trail Blazers. The biggest Laker problem this season has been their awful defense, so pay extra attention to the squad on that side of the floor.

Lakers dealing with multiple injuries

When Lakers coach Luke Walton and his staff meet before every game to finalize offensive sets and defensive schemes, they often tackle another question. Who do we start?

Finding themselves without D’Angelo Russell (left knee), Nick Young (right leg) and Jose Calderon (right hamstring) in recent weeks, those conversations have become more difficult.

As the Lakers were reminded in their 134-95 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday at Toyota Center, seemingly none of the combinations they have tried since the slew of injuries has adequately addressed the team’s diminished backcourt situation or its slow starts. On Wednesday, Walton started seldom-used guard Marcelo Huertas at point guard and inserted reserve Jordan Clarkson into the starting shooting guard spot he assumed for all of the 2015-16 season.

— OC Register

Quick Take: The Lakers are 10-14 this season, which is solid considering they’ve lost four games in a row and seven of their last 10. Earlier in the season when they enjoyed good health, they were one of the most fun teams to watch in the league. There’s no reason why they can’t resume that once the squad is complete again.

Jose Calderon out 2-4 weeks with hamstring strain

Lakers guard Jose Calderon, who was injured in the first quarter of Saturday night’s game in Memphis, was evaluated and had an MRI by team orthopedist Dr. David McAllister of UCLA Health. The results confirmed a right hamstring strain, which is expected to sideline Calderón 2-4 weeks.

In 14 games (nine starts) this season for the Lakers, Calderón is averaging 4.7 points, 2.6 assists, and 2.2 rebounds in 13.9 minutes per game while shooting 41.7% from three-point range.

Lakers assign Ivica Zubac to D-League

The Los Angeles Lakers have assigned center Ivica Zubac to the Los Angeles D-Fenders, it was announced today.

Zubac was selected by the Lakers with the 32nd overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft and has appeared in three games for the team this season.

The center is expected to be in uniform when the D-Fenders host the Rio Grande Valley Vipers at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 17, at the Toyota Sports Center.

As a kid, Nick Young wanted to be a Hollywood stunt man

Before a superstar girlfriend made him tabloid royalty and before a video leak made him a pariah; before one coach sent him to the bench and a new one rescued him from it; before he was Swaggy P or could even dunk, Nicholas Young wanted to be in the movies.

Specifically, he yearned for a life as a Hollywood stunt man.

His mother, Mae, took Nick and his brothers to Universal Studios and the future Lakers guard became enamored with the anonymous role players who ran through fire and fought with swords and scaled walls without suffering a scratch.

At home, Nick jumped off the roof of the garage and the family’s Culver City apartment. He built ramps in the street to perform bicycle tricks.

“He was a very difficult child,” Mae Young, Nick’s mother, said, “because he was constantly bruised and cut and scraped up.”

— Orange County Register

Lakers exercise contract options on D`Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and Larry Nance Jr

The Los Angeles Lakers have exercised their team options for the 2017-18 season on forwards Larry Nance Jr. and Julius Randle, and guard D’Angelo Russell, it was announced today by General Manager Mitch Kupchak.

Nance Jr., selected with the 27th pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, appeared in 63 games (22 starts) in his rookie season, tallying three double-doubles. He finished third among all rookies in field goal percentage (52.7%) and 10th in rebounds per game (5.0). On January 14 at Golden State, Nance Jr. recorded a career-high six steals, becoming the first Laker rookie since Eddie Jones to have at least six takeaways in a game.

Randle, the seventh overall selection in the 2014 NBA Draft, was one of only nine players in the NBA last season to average a double-double, and did so in the fewest minutes per game of anyone in that group (11.3 points and 10.2 rebounds in 28.2 minutes per game). He appeared in 81 games (60 starts) in 2015-16, registering 34 double-doubles and one triple-double, finishing the season ranked sixth in the NBA in total rebounds. Randle was chosen by USA Basketball to compete with the USA Men’s Select Team that trained with the Men’s National Team in Las Vegas this summer in preparation for the Olympics.

The second overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft, Russell garnered All-Rookie Second Team honors after finishing last season ranked fourth among rookies in assists (3.3) and steals (1.16) per game and fifth in points (13.2) and three-point field goal percentage (35.1%). He was one of 10 American rookie and sophomore players selected to participate in the Rising Stars Challenge at NBA All-Star 2016, and became the youngest player in NBA history to make 120+ three-pointers in a season. Russell was chosen by USA Basketball to compete with the USA Men’s Select Team that trained with the Men’s National Team in Las Vegas this summer in preparation for the Olympics.

Lakers waive Anthony Brown

The Los Angeles Lakers have waived forward Anthony Brown.

Brown appeared in six games this preseason, averaging 3.2 points and 1.7 rebounds in 8.3 minutes per game. As a rookie with the Lakers last season, Brown averaged 4.0 points and 2.4 rebounds in 29 games (11 starts).

The Lakers roster stands at 15.