Lonzo Ball Could Miss The Rest Of The Preseason With An Ankle Injury


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The 2017 NBA rookie class has a lot of hype behind it, and for good reason. Not only was the 2017 NBA Draft strong thanks to the likes of Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball, Jayson Tatum, Justin Jackson, and De’Aaron Fox, to name a few, but NBA fans also have older rookies like Ben Simmons, Milos Teodosic, and Bogdan Bogdanovic to look forward to.

The actual class of 2017 took a minor hit on Sunday afternoon when Los Angeles Lakers Head Coach Luke Walton revealed that Lonzo Ball could miss the rest of the preseason with what is believed to be a minor left ankle sprain. Ball suffered the injury in Monday’s preseason game against the Denver Nuggets, and while the injury doesn’t appear to be serious long-term, the Lakers are being extra cautious.

It’s undoubtedly the right approach, even though preseason is significantly more important for a rookie like Ball than it would be for an NBA veteran. If Ball misses the rest of the preseason like Walton suggests, he’ll have only played in two preseason games prior to his regular season debut. Walton detailed exactly where Ball’s ankle is at after shootaround prior to their game against the Sacramento Kings in Vegas on Sunday.

Transcript via The L.A. Times:

“Well, he tried to do some stuff in practice yesterday and he couldn’t,” Lakers coach Luke Walton said after shootaround on Sunday. “Even before practice he was working with Miles and he was just limping around. It made no sense to try to have him play. If you can’t run and jump, there’s no reason to fight through that. We are just going to keep giving him treatment, and he will be day to day.”

If Lonzo can’t run, jump, or do some stuff that sounds a bit worse than a minor ankle injury, which is all the more reason to take it slow. This is the NBA, so you never know, but the Lakers aren’t necessarily gunning for the playoffs this season. It’s going to be a developmental year for a fun young Lakers squad, and Lonzo’s health moving forward should take precedence over just about anything else.

“I assume he will be back by then [the regular season],” Walton said. “If he’s not ready to play basketball and really cut and move and do everything that you need that ankle you need it to do for you, we are not going to play him.”

If Lonzo misses the rest of the preseason, it’s a minor speed bump. If Lonzo misses some time in the regular season like Walton suggests could happen, it’s a little more concerning. Thankfully, the Lakers don’t seem all that worried. It’s a bummer for Lakers fans, though. Lonzo arrived in L.A. with a lot of fanfare, and it’s unfortunate that they won’t be able to watch him play for a while.

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