Fortunately, the sprain turned out to be mild as Bynum will miss limited time. Despite the good news of Bynum’s ankle injury only being minor, some bad news followed with the Los Angeles Lakers fining the All-Star center an undisclosed amount for numerous infractions.
Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com reports:
One of the stunts that warranted the fine from the team was Bynum blowing off a meeting with Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak.
Bynum told ESPNLosAngeles.com he was unaware of the fine before getting into his car outside the Lakers practice facility and driving away after the team’s shootaround in preparation for their game against the New Jersey Nets on Tuesday.
Bynum did tell the website, though he will not play in Tuesday night’s game after suffering a moderate sprain of his left ankle in the first quarter of a game against the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.
This definitely turned a lot of heads in Los Angeles on Tuesday and for good reason with it becoming more and more clear that Andrew Bynum is turning into a distraction in the locker room. It isn’t a total surprise with Bynum’s success this season and bigger role on the Lakers that ego and immaturity would be a problem.
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Even though Bynum has been suiting up for the Los Angeles Lakers for seven seasons now, the up-and-coming center is still just 24-years-old and bound to show his immaturity from time to time. This season seems to be worse than usual though with Bynum spinning out of control. There definitely needs to be an intervention at some point by team leader Kobe Bryant or Lakers head coach Mike Brown to restore order in the locker room.