The Los Angeles Lakers have been dealing with a number of minor injuries throughout training camp. The hope was that these would subside before the regular season opener, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.
While Brandon Ingram quickly returned from his injury, and Lonzo Ball is set to be ready for Thursday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers, the same can’t be said for Julius Randle and Andrew Bogut.
According to Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum SportsNet, both Randle and Bogut are inactive for the Lakers’ season opener:
Julius Randle, Andrew Bogut inactive for opening night, as per NBA email sent to all teams. Neither practiced today for Lakers.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) October 16, 2017
Things could still change, however, as Bresnahan noted that the Lakers could still actvate either or both before Thursday:
Randle + Bogut could still be activated in time for opening night, according to NBA. Emailed list sent to teams was present-day assessment.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) October 16, 2017
This would be especially tough for Randle, who has been one of the Lakers’ best players throughout preseason. He left Friday’s preseason finale with back spasms, and that diagnosis was changed to an intercostal strain after a closer look.
Bogut, on the other hand, did not play at all in the preseason originally due to visa issues, but then dealt with a groin strain. Despite this he still got the Lakers final roster spot over Vander Blue and Briante Weber and with his defensive ability and knowledge of Luke Walton’s offense, should be a solid addition once healthy.
With the Lakers potentially down two rotation bigs for the season opener, Larry Nance Jr. will almost definitely get the start at power forward as he and Randle were in a battle for the spot. Rookie forward Kyle Kuzma will likely have to take on a bigger role as well, with players like Ivica Zubac, Luol Deng, and Corey Brewer all possibly seeing increased roles now.