After a strong 2013-14 NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers re-signed Nick Young to a four-year contract this past off-season. With expectations high heading into this season, Young unfortunately suffered a torn ligament in his thumb during training camp and missed the first 10 games this season.
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While Young provided a spark when he returned from his thumb injury, the sixth man struggled this season, shooting a career-low 36.6 percent from the field. On Feb. 23, Young experienced swelling in his knee and a CT scan later revealed he suffered a small fracture in his kneecap.
With seven games remaining in the 2014-15 NBA season, head coach Byron Scott said at Saturday’s practice that Young will likely be out for the remainder of the season:
Byron Scott says that Nick Young will likely be out for the remainder of the season.
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 4, 2015
With the Lakers out of playoff contention and evaluating their young prospects, there was no rush for Young to return from his knee injury. The team recently signed Jabari Brown from the NBA D-League to a multi-year contract and he has been able to fill in the void off the bench.
As another disappointing season comes to an end, the Lakers face their most important off-season in nearly a decade. Armed with potentially five draft picks and a projected $28 million in cap space, the franchise will look to take the next step in their rebuild as Young looks to fully recover from a broken kneecap.
In 42 games, Young averaged 13.4 points and 2.3 rebounds in 23.8 minutes.
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