In the loss to the Golden State Warriors, the Los Angeles Lakers saw center Brook Lopez go down with the sprained ankle. Here are three players who need to step up with him out.
On Monday night, the Los Angeles Lakers played another thriller against the Golden State Warriors. While Kobe Bryant’s jersey retirement was the big attraction, it ended up being a great game.
Unfortunately, the Lakers hurt themselves with missed free throws late in the game, and ultimately lost in overtime. However, in the first half, the Lakers did see their center Brook Lopez go down with a nasty ankle injury.
Seeing all of Lopez’s weight on his rolled ankle did not look good at all. However, Lopez was lucky enough to avoid any major damage and will be out for at least three weeks.
Coming into the season, Lopez appeared to be arguably the best player for the Lakers on paper. As the big prize in the trade that sent D’Angelo Russell to Brooklyn, Lopez was expected to be a 20 points per game player for the Lakers. So far, that has not been the case.
This season, Lopez has averaged 12.8 points in just over 22 minutes per game. With his shooting percentages way down from his career averages, Lopez has not been able to get into a groove offensively for the Lakers.
Even though he hasn’t performed up to expectations, this is a still a loss for the Lakers. Now, other players are going to have to step up, as roles will be changing. With Lopez out for the next three weeks, here are three players that need to step up for the Lakers.