Even though the Los Angeles Lakers came up short against the Utah Jazz last night, there were some positives to take away from the game as the team fought hard until the end. All of those positives took a backseat however, to the health of rookie Brandon Ingram.
Ingram tweaked his knee in the first quarter of Friday’s game and though he tried to return in the second quarter, didn’t feel right and was ultimately ruled out of the game before the second half.
Obviously there were concerns, but Ingram said the injury wasn’t serious and he ultimately didn’t even need an MRI or X-Ray. The positive news continued as Ingram practiced on Saturday and head coach Luke Walton thinks he’ll play on Sunday in Oklahoma City according to Lakers reporter Mike Trudell:
Brandon Ingram (knee soreness) practiced today. Luke Walton said he thinks Ingram can play tomorrow at OKC, but it depends how he feels.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) October 29, 2016
Trudell also noted that Walton will talk with trainers to get an idea of how Ingram felt before making a final decision:
Walton will talk to the trainers and Ingram tomorrow to see how the knee feels after practicing today, then decide whether he’ll play.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) October 29, 2016
This is great to hear for Ingram and the Lakers. The injury looked to be a non-contact one for Ingram which certainly brought even more fear and angst, but it looks like Ingram was right in the injury not being a serious one.
Ingram’s absence was felt in the loss against the Jazz as it forced the Lakers to go small against the large wing players that Utah possessed. Thankfully, it looks like Ingram will be right back on the court Sunday.
Things don’t get any easier for the Lakers as they have three more stops on this early-season road trip, traveling to Indiana and Atlanta after Sunday’s game against the Thunder.