Throughout their five-game losing streak, one thing the Los Angeles Lakers have seemed to lack in many instances is energy. That is never something that Larry Nance Jr. fails to bring.
The second-year forward has been out with a bone bruise in his knee for nearly a month now, and the Lakers have sorely missed his versatility on both ends of the floor and his non-stop energy and relentlessness.
Nance has finally returned to practice but he isn’t quite ready to return as he has been ruled out of Friday’s game against the Indiana Pacers, according to Lakers Nation reporter Serena Winters:
Larry Nance Jr. has not been cleared to play by the training staff. He is out for tomorrow's game.
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) January 19, 2017
There are some encouraging signs, however as Winters also notes that Nance completed all of practice on Thursday and he’ll be re-evaluated on Saturday:
Larry was able to go through all of practice today though, which is a frat sign. Lakers say he'll be reevaluated on Saturday. https://t.co/JX2RrqX8KY
— Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) January 19, 2017
This would seemingly open the door for a potential Nance return on Sunday when they hit the road to take on the Dallas Mavericks though nothing is set in stone. Whenever it does happen, the Lakers will be very excited to get Nance back on the court.
His return will bring the Lakers back to full strength for the first time since the beginning of the season. What will be interesting to see is how Walton changes his rotations once Nance returns.
Tarik Black has gotten most of the backup center minutes, but Ivica Zubac is earning more minutes every game, and Walton has said that he wants to find a spot for the rookie. The Lakers’ frontcourt is suddenly extremely crowded, and Nance’s return will only make that even worse.