The Los Angeles Lakers got back in the win column Tuesday night, defeating the Denver Nuggets 120-116 to snap a three-game losing streak.
While the win was a good one, it came without starting power forward Julius Randle as he has been dealing with pneumonia.
Randle was recently cleared to resume basketball activities, and while he was listed as questionable for Tuesday’s game, he ended up not being able to go.
According to Mark Medina of the LA Daily News, Randle is again listed as questionable for Thursday’s road game against the Washington Wizards:
Lakers list Julius Randle as questionable for tomorrow vs Wizards. But Lakers said they would reevalute him after morning shootaround
— Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) February 1, 2017
Whether or not Randle will be ready to play by Thursday is unknown, but he is traveling with the team on their five-game road trip, so it is likely that he will return at some point during that.
On the season, Randle is averaging a career-high 13 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in 44 games. He is also averaging a career-high in field goal percentage at 48.9 percent.
Randle returning will certainly give the Laker a nice boost, which was the case with starting point guard D’Angelo Russell returning Tuesday night against the Nuggets.
Russell had missed the previous three games with a bone bruise, strained calf muscle, and sprained MCL, but he returned Tuesday and helped lead his team to a 120-116 victory. In the game, Russell had a career-high 10 assists to go along with 22 points and seven rebounds.
Dealing with a virus like pneumonia is not like dealing with a common injury, as it is an inflammatory condition of the lung, so it affects your ability to breathe. For that reason, Randle will not return to action until he feels 100 percent healthy.
