With the Los Angeles Lakers extremely thin at the point guard position, the team will be forced to go with a player that is only weeks removed from playing in the D-League.
As a result of Jordan Farmar going down with a torn hamstring once again, the recently signed Kendall Marshall will take over as the starter against the Utah Jazz on Friday night according to Mike Bresnahan of the L.A. Times:
It’s official: Kendall Marshall starts at point guard for Lakers tomorrow vs. Utah. He’ll be their sixth starting PG this season.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) January 2, 2014
The Lakers have been ravaged by injuries all season long with Farmar being the latest victim. Farmar had only played two full games before going down with another hamstring injury in a different location in the same leg.
As for Marshall, the former lottery pick has only played in four games since being signed by the team. Marshall was brought in to help shoulder the load in the backcourt following the knee injury to Kobe Bryant.
Along with Bryant and Farmar, the Lakers are also have Steve Blake, Xavier Henry and Steve Nash on the shelf. Needless to say, the team desperately needs their backcourt players back healthy if they want to salvage this season.
Currently, the Lakers are sitting in 13th place in the Western Conference with a record of 13-19. The team has also lost six straight games with a rough road trip on the horizon in which the Lakers will play 11 of their next 13 games away from Staples Center with the exception of the matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 10.
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Lakers 2013 Highlights