It’s been a rough season for Lakers fans, and the situation in Los Angeles became even more bleak on Saturday before a nationally televised game against the Celtics.
The Lakers announced that Brandon Ingram has been shut down after the team’s medical staff discovered a Deep Venous Thrombosis in his right shoulder. Coach Luke Walton would not provide any additional details about Ingram when asked by reporters Saturday, but confirmed that he’s done for the season.
Hours later, it was reported by Yahoo! Sports that the Lakers have also shut down guard Lonzo Ball, who suffered an ankle injury on January 19th against the Rockets and has been out ever since.
Kyle Kuzma, meanwhile, was ruled out for Saturday’s game with an ankle sprain. Earlier this week, it was reported that the Lakers planned to limit LeBron James minutes for the rest of the year, as the team is an insurmountable 6.5 games out of a playoff position in the Western Conference with 17 games to play – but with injuries ravaging the roster, James may have to play more than the team intended, unless they fully embrace tanking to improve their NBA draft lottery position.
At this stage, the long-term health of Ingram is the most important consideration for the Lakers.
