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LA Lakers Injury Report: New Big Man, Already out a Month, To Get Knee Surgery


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Although the 37-32 Los Angeles Lakers' two best players, All-Stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis, have been relatively healthy this season, the same can't be said for the team's reserves. Point guard Gabe Vincent, inked to a fresh three-season, $33 million contract last summer, has been on the shelf for all but five games this year. Combo forward Jarred Vanderbilt, who signed a four-year, $48 million extension last summer (it kicks in next season), has only been able to suit up for 29 contests. Small forward Cam Reddish, added on a veteran's minimum last summer, has been in and out of the lineup all year. Reddish has been absent for a few weeks with an ankle injury. He has cumulatively missed 29 games so far this season.

Now, another new Laker can officially be considered "oft-injured" this year. Floor-spacing power forward/center Christian Wood, like Reddish, agreed to a veteran's minimum deal in the offseason. The 6'8" 28-year-old out of UNLV has now missed 19 contests with Los Angeles. It sounds like he could miss many more.

Wood has been on the shelf for the last month due to a sore left knee. Now, it appears the knee requires a bit more than rest to fully recuperate. Sources inform Adrian Wojnarowski and Dave McMenamin of ESPN that he will have the knee scoped.

ESPN Sources with @McTen: Los Angeles Lakers F Christian Wood will undergo an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee and is expected to be sidelined for several weeks. The Lakers final regular season game is April 14. pic.twitter.com/4SVNc3qJO4

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) March 19, 2024

Per Woj and McMenamin, the club anticipates that Wood will be on the shelf for "several weeks." Given that LA's regular season finale is slated for April 14th, one wonders if he'll be able to recover prior to the start of this year's play-in tournament. Wood emerged as a nice bench option for the Lakers this season, though among the four big role players out with injuries, Wood is perhaps the least essential to Darvin Ham's rotation.

Anthony Davis, LeBron James, Christian Wood
Rui Hachimura #28 of the Los Angeles Lakers laughs on the bench with Christian Wood #35 as LeBron James #23 and Anthony Davis #3 talk during a 134-110 win over the Portland Trail Blazers at... Harry How/Getty Images

Wood is averaging 6.9 points on .466/.307/.702 shooting splits, 5.1 rebounds and one dime a night. That 30.7% three point shooting mark, on 2.3 triple tries, is a bit lackluster. He's a career 37.2% shooter from long range on 3.3 attempts, and had been brought in with the expectation that his jump shooting could help address one of the Lakers' biggest issues last year.

Although Wood's shooting from distance has been inefficient, he's still a respected jump shooter, and has worked well in various configurations alongside frontcourt starters James, Rui Hachimura and Davis. LA's size seems to be one of its big edges in a crowded Western Conference. Wood may be a fringe part of that, but he's still an important component who could come in handy in certain playoff matchups.

Los Angeles is presently just the Western Conference's ninth seed, with the 35-32 Golden State Warriors (one game behind them in the tenth seed) and the 32-35 Houston Rockets (four games behind LA in 11th) probably too close for comfort. LA would no doubt prefer to escape the play-in tournament bracket. It's three games behind the sixth-seeded Sacramento Kings (39-28). But the team has struggled to string together consistent wins much of the year, playing just around .500 basketball. Time will tell if that can change.

Uncommon Knowledge

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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