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What people don’t realise is the Lakers literally have a player who STARTED IN THE FINALS & AVERAGED 20 ON DENVER coming back to them Gabe Vincent is HIM
Los Angeles Lakers injury update: Three players that aren't coming back this season
NBATuesday, 19 March 2024 at 22:53
This 2023-24 NBA Season will go as one of the most challengings in LeBron James career wearing the purple and gold. The Los Angeles Lakers started this campaign by winning the In-season tournament, but despite that, injuries and lack of consistency have been the more discussed reasons to justify this moment in which they are at the last play-in position.
Injuries have been a constant in LA this year. It's true, every team has to deal with them at some point but the Lakers have lost some fundamental pieces in team's structure. Christian Wood, Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt were key role players, with the job to take some of the load off LeBron's and AD's shoulders, both offensively and defensively. Without them, Darvin Ham had to make some adjustments that have cost them to lose several games. According to CBS Sports' Bill Reiter, none of those three mentioned above will be returning to action this season.
Christian Wood
The 28-year-old appeared in 50 games for LA this season. Playing 17.8 minutes per game, Wood averaged 6.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 0.7 blocks. Not quite what was expected. After the All-Star break, the power forward began having some issues with his knee. Eventually this situation led Wood to undergo surgery and therefore, he's ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Jarred Vanderbilt
Jared is the only one that still could make a return before the season ends, although is very unlikely. Vanderbilt played just 29 games with the Lakers before being sidelined due to a foot sprain. While Vando's averages aren't that great, his impact isn't best measured statistically. He was the best lock-down defender on the squad. Big size, athletic, his contributions on the defensive side were significant for the squad and despite he's been out for quite some time now, the team still misses him very much.
Gabe Vincent
Gabe Vincent is probably the biggest decepointment for LA. The Lakers perimeter defense isn't good enough, and that's the area in which Gabe was supposed to fit better. Coming to LA after that impressive finals run with the Miami Heat, Vincent was able to play only five games before a knee injury forced him to sit out for the rest of the season. He will have the chance to come back to prove his worth next year, his contract expires three years from now.
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