The Los Angeles Lakers came out of the NBA Summer League victorious with the team getting the best of the Portland Trail Blazers in the championship game on Monday. Unfortunately, the Lakers were without rookie point guard and Summer League MVP, Lonzo Ball.
Ball, who had been dealing with a couple of injury issues in Summer League, was ruled out of the championship game against the Blazers with a calf strain. Although not considered a serious injury, Ball underwent an MRI on his injured calf on Tuesday when the team returned to Los Angeles.
According to Lakers reporter Mike Trudell, the results of the MRI confirmed the strain:
Lonzo Ball had an MRI today on the calf he strained against Dallas on Sunday. Results confirmed a low grade (mild) calf strain.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) July 19, 2017
Fortunately for Ball, the 19-year-old didn’t suffer a severe injury or anything that required surgery. The rookie phenom and the rest of the promising young squad will now focus on getting ready for training camp which gets underway in September.
Ball and company won’t be back in action in front of Lakers fans until Sept. 30 when the NBA preseason starts for Los Angeles. The team’s first game of the preseason will be against Karl-Anthony Towns and the revamped Minnesota Timberwolves at the Honda Center.
The Lakers will play six preseason games this year with three of those games being played at home. Los Angeles will face the Timberwolves, Denver Nuggets (twice), Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz, and Los Angeles Clippers with the last game set to be played on Oct. 13 against their crosscourt rivals on their home floor at the Staples Center.