A couple of young Lakers are being shut down for the rest of the season, while a trio of high-profile players were listed among the top NBA injuries over the weekend when Kevin Durant, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Luke Doncic left games prematurely.
Durant, Towns, and Doncic are all listed as day-to-day with their ailments. Golden State Warriors fans held their breath when they saw Durant fall to the court in a game against the Phoenix Suns.
Meanwhile, Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball will not suit up for the LA Lakers the rest of this season. The Lakers will not advance to the playoffs in LeBron James’ first year with the team.
To Limp and Die in LA
Once the LA Lakers played themselves out of the playoff hunt, the team downshifted gears. Word got out that the team would be minimizing LeBron James’s overall minutes every game. LeBron injured his groin during a Christmas game against the Golden State Warriors. He missed more time than expected and the Lakers slipped out of the playoff hunt.
The team also announced they were shutting down two key younger players. Both Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball would not return to action this season.
Ball played in only 47 games this season. He averaged 9.9 points, 5.4 assists, and 5.3 rebounds a game in his second-season in the NBA.
Ball suffered a serious sprained ankle on January 19. Doctors upgraded his injury to a bone bruise plus a Grade 3 ankle sprain. Ball’s return to action has been slower than he wanted. Team doctors determined it would be wise to focus on rehabilitation in the offseason. Officials stated Ball was “making good progress” but nothing else.
Ingram is one of the rare bright spots in a horrible season for the Lakers. In 52 games, Ingram averaged 18.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game. Ingram sat out a couple of games when he lost his cool in a brawl against the Houston Rockets.
Ingram’s injury sounds a little more severe. He has a blood clot in his arm. The official diagnosis is a deep venous thrombosis. He last played in a loss to the Phoenix Suns on March 2. Ingram dropped 25 points that night, but has not played since. He missed the next two games before team doctors decided to shut him down the rest of the year.
Pop Goes the Doncic
Perhaps your hippie friends might claim the sudden rash of injuries occurred because Mercury is in retrograde. However, astrology aside, the 82-game NBA season is a grueling affair.
Rookie of the Year candidate Luka Doncic said he heard a “pop” in his knee at the end of the Houston/Dallas game on Sunday night. He finished with 19 points and 15 rebounds in the 94-93 loss.
Team doctors diagnosed the Dallas Mavericks swingman with a knee strain. He’s listed as day-to-day. The Mavs are not going to the postseason this year, but it would be foolish to rush their 20-year old future superstar back onto the court to play in meaningless games. Despite a second-half surge from Trae Young from the Atlanta Hawks, Doncic has the Rookie of the Year locked up.
KD and KAT Down
Kevin Durant went down with a sprained ankle on Sunday night. The Warriors suffered an embarrassing loss at the hands of the Phoenix Suns. KD scored 25 points before he went down with the injury. He’s listed as day-to-day.
With 16 games remaining in the season, the Warriors will probably be cautious with KD. They are on a quest for a third-straight NBA title. The team hit rough waters in recent weeks with some head-scratching losses, but the veteran squad is expected to get their act together in the playoffs.
Karl Anthony-Towns has been on a tear the last couple of weeks for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Fantasy hoops players are going gaga over KAT’s recent run. KAT went down with a knee injury during a game against the Washington Wizards. He dropped 40 that night too. It marked his third 40-plus game in five games. KAT is averaging 24.5 points and 12.3 rebounds per game this season. He has a 26.99 PER, which makes stats geeks drool.
Officials in Minnesota were pleased with the results of KAT’s MRI. He missed the Wolves last game, however, he’s listed as day-to-day.
Karl Anthony-Towns is one of the NBA players featured in the newest basketball movie by Steven Soderbergh. KAT plays himself in “High Flying Bird“, which is currently available on Netflix.