The Los Angeles Lakers have been fortunate enough not to deal with any significant injuries over the course of training camp, preseason and the season opener, but their luck changed on Friday night with rookie Brandon Ingram going down.
Ingram headed to the locker room in the first quarter after suffering an apparent knee injury. Ingram left the court on his own power and didn’t appear to be in any significant pain with the injury, but apparently felt some discomfort in his right knee.
Ingram returned to the game in the second quarter after being cleared. Unfortunately, after being re-evaluated at halftime, the rookie has been ruled out for the rest of the game, according to ESPN’s Baxter Holmes:
Brandon Ingram was re-evaluated at halftime and will not return, the Lakers say. His sore right knee will be re-evaluated tomorrow.
— Baxter Holmes (@BaxterHolmes) October 29, 2016
The last thing the Lakers brass wanted to hear was an injury issue with their prized rookie. Ingram is adjusting to the NBA game and missing any time is not what the team wants, particularly in the beginning of the season.
Following the game against the Jazz, the Lakers will continue their road trip with three games left before they return to the Staples Center on Nov. 4 to face the Golden State Warriors. Luke Walton and company will take on Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday and then will go up against the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday before finishing the trip against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.