The Los Angeles Lakers have improved ever since starting this season with five losses in their first eight games. But they’re still very much figuring things out, and they hold a somewhat mediocre 9-7 record as they prepare for a four-game road trip that starts on Saturday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
One problem they have faced is injuries. Several players have missed multiple games as a result, and as a result, the team has been somewhat unable to build chemistry and cohesion.
After it looked like Los Angeles was trending toward full health, the injury bug hit it again. Key reserve forward Rui Hachimura will reportedly miss at least a week due to a nasal fracture that he has a procedure on.
Via ESPN:
“Already navigating early-season injuries to the roster, the Los Angeles Lakers suffered another setback Friday when forward Rui Hachimura underwent a procedure to repair a nasal fracture, the team announced.
“Hachimura did not accompany the team on its four-game trip starting in Cleveland on Saturday and continuing through Philadelphia, Detroit and Oklahoma City. He will be reevaluated by team doctors in about a week, the Lakers said.
“The injury occurred late in the first quarter of Wednesday’s 104-101 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in which Hachimura had nine points on 4-of-11 shooting and three rebounds in 26 minutes.”
The Lakers are already thin at the wing and forward spots. Jarred Vanderbilt, one of their best and most versatile defenders, has been out since the preseason with left heel bursitis, although he may be inching toward a return. In addition, Cam Reddish, who has emerged lately as a viable role player, missed Wednesday’s contest due to groin soreness.