Lakers Suffer Another Injury Blow After Guard Gets Ruled Out for 2–4 Weeks
The Los Angeles Lakers suffered another player to their growing injury list. Gabe Vincent has been diagnosed with a sprained left ankle and will miss at least two to four weeks.
According to Dave McMenamin and Shams Charania of ESPN, Vincent suffered the injury in the third quarter of the Lakers’ 127-120 win over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday. He was in a walking boot after the game and underwent an X-ray the following day to check the severity of his injury.
The results came back negative, but an MRI showed that Vincent had a sprained ankle. NBA insider Chris Haynes added that the veteran point guard also sustained a slight ligament tear in his left ankle.
In addition to Vincent, LeBron James is already out until mid-November with sciatica. Luka Doncic is out for a week due to a sprained finger and a lower leg contusion, while
Other players on the team’s injury report include rookie Adou Thiero, who underwent offseason knee surgery, and
Jake LaRavia Replaced Gabe Vincent in Starting Lineup
Gabe Vincent was named starter by coach JJ Redick at the start of the season amid LeBron James’ recovery from sciatica. Vincent averaged 3.7 points, 1.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steals in 24.0 minutes per game in the Los Angeles Lakers’ first three contests.
In Vincent’s absence on Monday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers, Redick went with Jake LaRavia as Austin Reaves‘ backcourt partner. LaRavia finished with three points, six rebounds and five assists, while Reaves continued to stay hot following his 51-point performance in Sacramento.
Reaves had 41 points, four rebounds and five assists, but it wasn’t enough to stop the Blazers from getting the 122-108 win. With no other options, the 27-year-old guard was expected to take over the team’s offense, and he hasn’t disappointed.
With James and Luka Doncic on the sidelines, Reaves has been given a chance to increase his value ahead of his free agency next summer. He’s averaging 34.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 9.7 assists and 1.3 steals after the first four games of the season. He’s also shooting 56.6% from the field, 45.0% from 3-point range and 89.2% from the free-throw line.
Redick Gives Update on Smart and Hayes
Speaking to reporters after the loss to the Blazers, Lakers coach JJ Redick shared an update on Marcus Smart and Jaxson Hayes. Redick is hoping to get the duo back in time for the team’s next game against the
“Hopeful on Jaxson, hopeful on Marcus. Yeah, hopeful, but we’ll see,” Redick said, via Fadeaway World.
The Lakers begin a two-game road trip in Minnesota before traveling to Tennessee to face the
Warriors major and surprise vote of confidence comes with ominous warning
The Golden State Warriors might have suffered a blowout 20-point defeat at the hands of the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, but that hasn't stopped them from rising to second in
Stephen Curry's heroics late in Thursday's stunning overtime victory over the Denver Nuggets has certainly a played a major role in the rise, with the Warriors having ranked eighth last week before back-to-back wins to open the season.
It's a major vote of confidence in what Golden State are building on the path to what they hope is a fifth championship in the last 11 seasons, but it also comes with an ominous warning based on their strong start 12 months ago.
Warriors have been here before early in the season
While the Warriors were ultimately forced through the play-in tournament to secure their playoff berth last season, few will forget their hot start that proved nothing but a false promise to what quickly followed as a brutal reality.
Golden State started 12-3 and were 10-2 when they held second spot in the power rankings in week five of last season. They ranked fourth in offense, fourth in defense and third in net rating at that point, utilizing a deep rotation to advantage before it all came crumbling down.
The Warriors would go 13-23 in their next 36 games before the Jimmy Butler trade, spiralling all the way down to 11th in the Western Conference and looking nothing like the team that was second in the power rankings less than three months earlier.
That's reason enough to warn against reading too much into power rankings at this point of the season, particularly for a veteran team like Golden State who are far more concerned with what happens come May and June.
However, there is reason for the Warriors to believe this rise to second in the power rankings is more sustainable than what we saw saw last season. Golden State have been simply elite since Butler's acquisition, and there's no reason that shouldn't remain the case so long as health and availability doesn't become an overriding concern.
Along with Butler, the Warriors also have a veteran stretch big in Al Horford who they didn't have 12 months ago, while the improvement in Jonathan Kuminga through three games has been both notable and important in their title chances.
So while last year's strong start does serve as a warning, there's no reason to believe that the Warriors can't continue the kind of form that's seen an early rise in the power rankings.
