NBA Rumors: Los Angeles Lakers May Shut Down Star Player With Injury, According To Report By Ryan Ward
NBA rumors about Los Angeles Lakers star rookie Kyle Kuzma have surfaced following an injury against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Already dealing with a painful right ankle injury for most of the season, Kuzma hurt his left ankle in the first half of the April 6 game. He tried to play through the pain but ended up asking Lakers coach Luke Walton to remove him from the game about halfway through the third quarter.
A post-game report by Lakers beat writer Ryan Ward stated that X-rays performed on Kuzma’s left ankle came back negative. Later, Ward would address the NBA rumors about Kuzma having possibly played his final minutes of the year. In that report, Kuzma responded to a question about getting shut down for the final three regular-season games.
“I don’t know…I’m the worst person to ask that question. I don’t know. It’s that point in the season where there’s 3 games left. It is what it is. It’s up to them at the end of the day.”
As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Kyle Kuzma has become one of the most important assets to the Los Angeles Lakers. Considered to be one of the best surprises from the 2017 NBA Draft, Kuzma may now be an untouchable commodity in trade discussions. This information points toward the Lakers being extremely cautious with his ankles in the final week of the season.
Kyle Kuzma left the game with a sprained left ankles, as the Lakers relinquished a 7-point halftime lead.https://t.co/mnXfJkUgEN
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 7, 2018
While an official announcement has not yet come from the team, these NBA rumors certainly would make sense. The Lakers are only playing for pride at this point of the season, as the team has long-since been eliminated from making the 2018 NBA Playoffs. With a 34-45 record, the team has also improved upon the 2016-17 version, so it could just be time to pull in the sails and focus on next year. Risking a more severe injury to a long-term player like Kuzma just wouldn’t be good business for the Lakers.
If these NBA rumors turn out to be true and the Los Angeles Lakers do shut down Kyle Kuzma, he finishes his 77-game rookie campaign with averages of 16.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists. That’s very good for a player who slipped all the way to the No. 27 pick in the draft and had to take second-billing to Lonzo Ball at Staples Center for most of the 2017-18 NBA season.
