Lakers Rumors: Brandon Ingram, Rajon Rondo luck out with short suspensions

Recent Los Angeles Lakers rumors involve the fallout from the fight Saturday night with the Houston Rockets, as suspensions were handed down by the league.

Recent Los Angeles Lakers rumors involve Brandon Ingram and Rajon Rondo. The two were involved in a nasty incident during the Lakers’ home opener against the Houston Rockets on Saturday night.

With about four minutes remaining in the game, Ingram became frustrated after a foul was called on him while defending James Harden. As Harden contested that his basket should have counted as a continuation, Ingram shoved Harden and things would further escalate from there.

After the shove, Ingram got into the face of a referee as well. After Ingram was moved away from the incident by Lance Stephenson, Chris Paul and Rondo shared some words. Things would quickly get out of hand.

Rondo and Paul ended up throwing punches at each other as the referees were unable to step in quickly enough. Ingram would come flying in with a punch of his own.

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It was an ugly incident that marred what was a great game between the two teams. It was closely contested throughout, as both were looking for their first win of the season. Ultimately, the Rockets would come away with the victory, winning 124-115.

After seeing the incident in the video, lengthy suspensions were expected. Ingram receiving a suspension of at least 10-15 games seemed like a sure thing because of his actions. Paul and Rondo would receive decent suspensions of their own, especially since punches were thrown.

Well, that does not seem to be the case. If these Lakers rumors are true about the length of the suspensions, the teams and players should consider themselves lucky.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the suspensions will be shorter than expected. Ingram will receive a four-game suspension, while Rondo will be out for three games and Paul will be out for two.

This could have been a season-altering event for the Lakers. For a team that needs as much improvement in the chemistry department as Los Angeles, losing Ingram or Rondo for a lengthy period of time would have been tough to overcome.

Instead, both players will be able to return to the team next week. The Lakers play four times in the next six days. They host the San Antonio Spurs on Monday before traveling to take on the Phoenix Suns before returning home to host the Denver Nuggets.

At that point, Rondo will be allowed to return to the court. Ingram will miss one more game, a visit to the Spurs on Saturday evening. Following that game, Ingram will be allowed to return to the team.

While missing any games isn’t ideal, the Lakers are lucky the suspensions are as short as they are. With Ingram and Rondo sidelined, expect Lonzo Ball to step into the starting lineup. Kyle Kuzma and Josh Hart are options for Ingram’s spot. Michael Beasley and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk could be inserted into the lineup to help soak up minutes as well.