Veteran point guard Rajon Rondo suffered a fractured hand during a Los Angeles Lakers victory on Nov. 14 and has been out of the lineup for nearly a month as a result. Though the 32-year-old was seemingly nearing a return according to his initial prognosis, Lakers head coach Luke Walton indicated on Monday that there was a setback of sorts.
Dave McMenamin of ESPN brings word from Walton, who shared that the Lakers “are going to shut (Rondo) down for a few days then get back out after it again.” This comes after a procedure on Sunday aimed at draining fluid from his injured hand and, though details are not fully available as to how long Rondo’s timeline will be extended, Walton said that “when players are as good as he is and have been for that long, it’s because they work really hard, so he wants to be on the court as much as possible.”
The ESPN report stipulates that Rondo was seen wearing a splint on the hand for only a short time following the initial injury, before pushing himself back into drills centering on conditioning on shooting. Walton said Rondo is “constantly working with” doctors from the team, including a hand specialist, but this kind of issue may delay his timeline, even when compared to the four-or-five week projection initially released by the team.
In Rondo’s absence, the Lakers have posted an 8-4 record, which includes an active stretch of four wins in the last five games. Though there are always questions about Rondo’s weaknesses as a shooter and on the defensive end, having another piece in the backcourt would be helpful for Los Angeles when he returns, even if Lonzo Ball steps forward into a prominent role that he could carry over beyond the return of his veteran cohort.
This is certainly a situation worth monitoring for a team that isn’t overflowing with quality depth but, at the very least, Rondo’s return no longer appears imminent following this hiccup.
