As expected, LeBron James (left foot soreness) has been listed as out for the Los Angeles Lakers’ contest against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night. Meanwhile, Austin Reaves (left pelvic contusion) is listed as questionable for the game.
This will be the second consecutive game missed for James after suiting up for the Lakers’ first 23 games this season. This could be a bit of a long-term play for the LeBron and the Lakers, however, as this would give him eight full days off to recharge his batteries, assuming he were to play on Sunday against the Memphis Grizzlies. James also was not at Lakers practice on Wednesday due to personal reasons.
Reaves, on the other hand, was at practice Wednesday and participated in most of the live drills aside from one particularly physical one in which head coach JJ Redick felt it was best for him not to partake in. There is some optimism that he will be able to go on Friday and he has missed five straight games since taking that hard fall against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Jarred Vanderbilt (right foot surgery recovery/left knee effusion), Christian Wood (left knee surgery recovery) and Jaxson Hayes (right ankle sprain/contusion) are all still listed as out.
Hayes is nearing the time in which he was expected to return from his sprained ankle, but Redick recently said that his return date remains in flux so it is unclear when he will be back on the court. Both Wood and Vanderbilt are still a ways away from returning for the Lakers, but both would bring much needed depth in the frontcourt. Vanderbilt’s perimeter defense and hustle are sorely missed while Wood would bring an offensive punch and depth behind Anthony Davis.
JJ Redick hopeful recent adversity can help Lakers come together
It has been a rough go of things for the Lakers overall recently with some really tough losses and embarrassing performances. But coach JJ Redick is hopeful this adversity can bring the team together.
“Well, adversity is good. I think it toughens your resolve, it forces you to problem solve,” Redick said recently. “It hopefully can bring the group together. I think it’s a Jay-Z song, I don’t know the exact title, but it says ‘It was all good just a week ago.’ And the reality is, that’s the NBA.
“Every team is gonna go through a stretch like this, good teams, bad teams. The games come so fast and you have an injury or you have a couple bad games and you go into a funk or into a shooting slump. This is it, this is the NBA. I felt that as a player, certainly feel it in this stretch as a coach.”
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