Kaman turned his ankle at the end of the game, D'Antoni: "He turned his ankle." Says it's "probably moderate" (on @twcsportsnet)
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) December 28, 2013
Although the injury is being considered moderate at this point in time by D’Antoni, it could prove to be much worse in the days to come. Kaman had arguably his best performance of the season on Friday night with a season-high 19 points to go along with 10 rebounds and three blocks. The one-time All-Star kept the Lakers afloat against the Jazz in the first half and partly through the second half until Nick Young stole the show scoring 13 of his 19 points in the third quarter.
It remains to be seen what the extent of Kaman’s injury will be, but despite his impressive performance, the veteran may head back to the bench or may even struggle to get playing time once again moving forward.
D’Antoni didn’t exactly praise Kaman enough to guarantee playing time moving forward via Winters:
D'Antoni didn't make it sound like Kaman's worked himself into rotation once Pau returns: "Obviously when Pau comes back stuff has to give."
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) December 28, 2013
With Kaman clearly still able to produce solid numbers in extended minutes, the veteran’s trade value may have increased with the potential for a deal on the horizon. The Lakers may look to make a deal in the coming weeks leading up to the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 20 with Kaman potentially one of their biggest bargaining chips.
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Mike D’Antoni On Utah Jazz, Pau Gasol, Got Coal For Christmas
