Los Angeles Lakers Roster, Injury News 2017: Brook Lopez Out for Three Weeks With an Ankle Injury
The Los Angeles Lakers will have to make do without their starting center for the next few weeks.
The team has announced that Brook Lopez has been diagnosed with a moderate right ankle sprain and he's going to be out for at least three weeks.
Lopez injured his ankle in the first half of their 116–114 overtime loss to the Golden State Warriors on Monday and he had to be helped off the floor by his teammates. Fortunately, the X-ray results came back negative and a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan confirmed that there was no structural damage.
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The Lakers have a loaded frontcourt, but they are still going to miss Lopez's presence on the court. The veteran center is averaging a career-low 12.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 blocks in under 22 minutes a game this season. He's also shooting 44.4 percent from the field, 29.7 percent from beyond the arc, and 75.3 percent from the free-throw line.
"Brook means a lot," rookie point guard Lonzo Ball said, via ESPN. "Anybody that big with that skill set ... offensively and defensively he is big in the paint and he can space the offense so we are definitely going to miss him and we will try our best without him," he continued.
"We are not going to be able to replace Brook but everybody has to step up," he added.
Well, a number of players did step up their games while Lopez was on the shelf as the Lakers ended the Houston Rockets' 14-game winning streak with a 122–116 victory on Wednesday night.
Andrew Bogut started at center in place Lopez, but the Lakers would often go small with Larry Nance Jr. and Julius Randle at the pivot. Rookie forward Kyle Kuzma led the team with 38 points, seven rebounds and four assists. He made seven of his ten attempts from three.
