The injury bug still hasn’t left the Lakers organization. Following consecutive seasons that saw the Lakers battle myriad injuries to nearly every rotation player, this season has now seen it’s first major injury of the year. Nick Young has a torn ligament in his shooting thumb, according to ESPN’s Arash Markazi.
Lakers guard Nick Young suffered a complete tear of the radial collateral ligament in his right thumb during practice and could be sidelined for the start of the regular season.
Young’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, told ESPN.com he expects the injury to sideline the veteran for six to eight weeks.According to the report, the injury came during Thursday’s practice when Young was defending Kobe Bryant and jammed it trying to swipe the ball from Bryant.
The news is troubling for the Lakers on several levels. Young is coming off the most productive season of his career and was expected to fill a similar role from last season as a scorer off the bench.
While Young’s primary role may not change for the upcoming season, the offensive philosophy will change dramatically. Moving from Mike D’Antoni’s more free wheeling, run-and-gun style, Byron Scott is bringing a version of Eddie Jordan’s Princeton Offense. While the principals of the Princeton aren’t terribly complex, you want guys to find a rhythm on the court at this time of year because of the read-and-react nature of the offense.
Young’s injury also has implications outside of his health to begin the season. Wayne Ellington was the most recent Laker to be signed, and his ability to shoot from three should allow him to see the floor to eat some of Young’s minutes. There’s also the case of rookie Jordan Clarkson, who could be in a prime position to earn some minutes early in the season playing as an off-guard, especially with the timetable for Xavier Henry to return still a bit up in the air.
There’s also the question of what the Lakers will do with their final roster spot. The team currently has 14 men signed on for the season, and can potentially add another before the start of the season. The team’s training camp invitees include a plethora of guards and wings, and the Lakers could make a need-based move instead of a talent-based move to make up for the absence of Young — and Henry — to start the season.
There have been a lot of good things said about Ronnie Price since camp has started, but the Lakers may need a bigger guard who can defend opposing wings.
Lastly, this hurts because Young was going to be the main guy who would help eat some of Kobe’s minutes. This team is a bit better off in this department than in seasons pre-dating the D’Antoni and Mike Brown eras, but losing a guy like young hurts Scott’s ability to be creative with lineups to cut back on Bryant’s.
The positive is that, should Young only miss the eight weeks of expected recovery time, the team will be without his services for only a month, and will have to watch him play into game shape for another couple of weeks.
Scott is going to see what the bench unit is made of without its primary scorer very early on, and should only help the rest of the unit once a guy who can create his own shot is brought back with to the group. While this isn’t the greatest news to receive this early in the season, it’s not necessarily something that will make or break this Lakers season. Let’s just hope Young has a speedy recovery.
Jack says
Well, the news about Young is a bummer. I had hoped for a fast start out of the gate and while this does not preclude that it certainly makes it more difficult. Outside of Kobe, Young is our best offensive player.
Additionally, Young was slated to split the SF position with Johnson. So out of necessity we may see a big lineup with Randle getting more than spot minutes at the Three. I think this may be a silver lining in that Randle will get a lot of minutes early.
Fern says
I know is early , but im troubled, this injury bug…
KenOak says
Hate the injury to Young, but love the quote from Coach Scott.
Nick Young injured thumb while defending Kobe. Byron Scott told Nick, “If you would have moved your feet you wouldn’t have hurt your hand.”
mud says
well, that’s not what anyone wanted.
must lift the curse. who’s whammy? Portland? Sacramento? Boston? some Wiccan Clippers fanatic?
injuries are part of the game…may they be rare.
Mid-Wilshire says
Too bad about Nick Young. I would think that his minutes (at the 2) would go to Wayne Ellington, who is capable and a decent shooter, and Jordan Clarkson.
Now it’s time for Xavier Henry to get well. I understand that his knee is now fine but his back has been seizing up on him. He certainly does seem injury prone. In any event, get well soon, X. We may end up needing you.
Swaggy’s injury could affect the chemistry on the bench mob. This is a tough break. Young will probably miss November. Even so, the Lakers do have some good depth. In a sense, this may actually make them deeper.
Fern says
@kenoak thats gold, all Kobe signs so far are encouraging, Kobe is out to prove something and he is hungry, i think we might witness something a healthy hungry Kobe is a huge upgrade by himself…
The Dane says
With this team I just want to watch them grow and jell… and stay healthy. Watching a decimated group isn’t a lot of fun.
Jayvee says
A bad sign..with swaggy P’s injury i doubt if they can still get atleast the 8th seed in the playoffs spot.
Warren Wee Lim says
Kobe needs Swaggy to rest. Otherwise its just him on offense (now that Pau is gone) and perhaps Boozer. But this day and age suggests we need more than just a 1-2 punch thats above 70 years old in total age.
I feel for Swaggy, I’d have loved him to get his 18-20ppg off the bench on a Kobe role with more athletic guys, breaking from time to time.
The effect does signify minutes head to Ellington and Randle. Its a good opportunity since we are paper-thin at the wings. Another effect it could lead to is Kobe playing SF. There have been discussions about this and perhaps we can split the void at the 2 between a little bit of Ellington and more for Lin, hopefully that means Nash is playing then.
I still fancy the Lakers for a playoff stint.
J C says
I hope this doesn’t mean Kobe will expect or be expected to play 40+ min. That’s a recipe for disaster.
Byron must hold Kobe’s minutes down regardless of Swaggy’s status.
BigCitySid says
Injury happened while playing defense, smh. Love Coach Scott’s response, thanks KenOak. At least it’s early in the season. More Lin minutes?
Ed says
Very ominous that Kelly and Nick should go down before playing one game. Nick`s game is shooting,and you have to wonder how this will affect his game when he returns. Still not clear on the X-Man`s status,knee, wrist, back? He`s the choice to take the minutes,but what about his health. More time for Ellington and Wes,and another wing may have to come on as the 15th man,but this is very bad news,no sugar coating. Nick clowns around,but on the court he is super competitive.
bryan S. says
Okay I have to say it:
Was overworking Nick Young a factor in his injury? Byron Scott is quoted as saying “I told Nick that he injured himself because he didn’t move his feet (meaning he reached and put his hand at a more vulnerable angle). So, why didn’t he move his feet? Because he was being lazy? Possibly. More likely he was very tired and was still going hard against Kobe, and didn’t have enough left to move his feet. Sport injuries happen much more often when fatigue is a factor–this has been proven in numerous studies. Byron’s old school methods might need some updating. Rest and recovery are key to optimizing performance.
I have always believed that Mitch Kupchak is a very underrated GM. But where he has fallen short in my estimation, was in reigning in MDA overuse of Kobe that led to a predictably bad outcome. The lakers can’t afford to be dumb again.
T. Rogers says
Let’s hope Young’s injury gives Clarkson a chance to get some good minutes under his belt. I’d imagine that Kobe will have to take some time at SF opening the door for Clarkson at SG. Young is the second best scorer on the team. Losing him for the first month hurts. But quicker development for Clarkson could be a silver lining.
And no matter who gets hurt the limit on Kobe’s minutes can’t be compromised.
Anonymous says
Folks that think the Lakers have the talent needed to go far should read the above comments closey. We’re talking about plugging the whole in our lineup with Ellington. No offense to him but we just picked him up off the FA scrap heap a few days ago and now everyone seems to think we’re OK because Ellington will pick up the extra minutes.
rr says
If there is a string of injuries in camp, then the point bryan s. is making should certainly be looked at. Many of us remember the 1989 Finals, when the Lakers clinched a Finals spot very quickly, and Riley took the team to a “boot camp” waiting for the ECF to finish. Worthy got hurt, then Magic, and some around the org. at the time blamed overwork. Scott made a comment a couple of weeks ago, which I mentioned to Robert in an email, and which was mentioned here, about needing trashcans in the practice facility for guys to “puke” in since he planned to run them hard, and Scott has made it known that he shares some of Riley’s philosophies.
rr says
Edit: it was actually Scott who got hurt in 1989. Worthy went down in 1983.
BigCitySid says
@ bryan S., pertaining to Young hurting himself while checking Kobe. While your thought is possible, here’s another: Young is just not a good defender and he was reaching instead of moving his feet. Who knows, could just be a freak accident. Such is life.
Next man up.
Jerke says
Interesting discussion on NBAradio this afternoon re: Mitch Kupchak and his championship comments and whether those comments hang Scot out to dry when it becomes apparent that this team will struggle. Lot of it centered around at how early in the season do things go south and how does Kobe react.
Also – the over/under on Kobe’s pts average this year apparently according to NBA.com stats guys is 22.5 – consensus seemed to be that he will average above especially the more the team struggles – but his efficiency will go down – so getting his points won’t necessarily be to the benefit of the team.
On the positive side – here’s what works in LA’s favour this year. Due to Phillys tanking antics the board of govenors will be voting to re-jig the lottery to discourage tanking – by evening the odds for the worst 4 teams and improving them for the teams 5-7 as well to move up. Therefore this season if LA is assured of missing the playoffs, this year at least looks much better for the Lakers pick to end up in the top 5 and not lose it to Phx. If (and this is a big if given that Nash just suffered a rolled ankle in practice today as well) Nash manages to stay healthy for the season and productive – Lakers should try to flip him for assets or picks at the trade deadline to a playoff team looking to make a deep run/wanting Nashes expiring 9 mill. At the very least this way the Lakers can stockpile some in house assets instead of throwing all their eggs into trying to land expensive free agents.
Kenny T says
I’d say it’s a bit of a stretch to cite overwork as leading to Nick’s injury. It’s only the first week of training camp. The Riley situation in ’89 was totally different. Swaggy just had bad luck.
KenOak says
Nick Young out for 6-8 weeks…Steve Nash just rolled his ankle and is going to be sitting out for a bit too. What does this team need to do to shake this curse?
Robert says
rr: Yes – Worthy in 83, Scott and Magic in 89, Worthy and Scott in 91
KenOak: “What does this team need to do to shake this curse?” We used to be lucky. So – I would ask, when did the curse start and what things changed about our franchise to bring it about? Some of the things that changed are not correctable, but there is one big thing that is.
Note to Byron Scott: I was your #1 supporter for your candidacy to be our coach and you continue to have my support. However if you are stubborn and run Kobe into the ground either with your pre-season conditioning regimen or too many minutes during games, you will quickly lose my support.
rr says
I’d say it’s a bit of a stretch to cite overwork as leading to Nick’s injury.
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No one actually drew that line directly. Just put it on the radar.
R says
Anon: “Folks that think the Lakers have the talent needed to go far should read the above comments closely. We’re talking about plugging the hole in our lineup with Ellington. No offense to him but we just picked him up off the FA scrap heap a few days ago and now everyone seems to think we’re OK because Ellington will pick up the extra minutes.”
Truly. Not only that, but Nick Young is recognized as a key player on this Lakers team. Now don’t get me wrong, I love Swaggy, but this tell us volumes about how far the Lakers have fallen.
R says
….not to mention this line of thought that somehow Nash is going to contribute in any sort of meaningful way this season. His biggest contribution to the Laker’s fortunes will be when he’s no longer paid by them.
J C says
Fans and Fanatics Finally Finish Fantasizing about watching our team – and actually get to WATCH the Lake Show in action tomorrow night.
Yes, it’s only preseason – but for the Lakers Faithful it’s a chance to see how Kobe’s moving, see if Nash can move at all, see Randle and Clarkson compete on a major league level, and observe coach Byron take the stage for the first time in his ‘dream job.’
I can almost taste it.
Gentlemen, start your engines!
The Dane says
This is one of my favourite skills trainers out there working with no other than Jordan Clarkson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5iWCKC2m5E
Shaun says
Very very excited for the game tonight – 10pm here in Montreal – first game of the year.
What are everyones thought on the new tv deal?
Could be great for us next year in free agency but I gotta ask why would the players ever allow an easing into of the new cap number? Are the owners not going to get paid the money, are they easing the profits they will make? I dont think so l.
Everclear says
It begins…
Buckle up, Laker fans.
Brian says
Anyone with insight into how Scott is approaching tonight’s game from a personnel perspective. Does he want to see everyone play or does he have a rotation in place and the only way to get in the rotation is to earn it by working hard in practice?
I know its only the first preseason game but I’m hoping to learn something about our depth chart – very anxious to see how and where he plays Randle, Davis and Clarkson. Curious to see if Randle looks ‘better’ than in the Summer League. He looked a little flabby at the time and I understand that Scott challenged him to get in better shape.
I’m not thinking playoffs as I don’t think this team has the talent and depth to challenge in the stacked Western Conference. I’m just hoping for a healthy season from Kobe and development from our youngsters.
A little luck in the lottery would also be on my wish list as I’d like to keep our #1 pick this season. Another high draft pick, a solid FA signing combined with our emerging youth and the Lakers will be on the right path.
Chris J says
I’d say it’s a bit of a stretch to cite overwork as leading to Nick’s injury. It’s only the first week of training camp. The Riley situation in ’89 was totally different. Swaggy just had bad luck.
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Totally agree; way to soon to make that comparison.
What does this team need to do to shake this curse?
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For one thing, quit stacking the roster with guys who have been in the league since Bill Clinton was in the White House. In some cases, things just happen. Young’s hand injury fits that bill. But when hoping for Nash and/or Kobe to play close to a full season at their ages/mileage, that’s just not going with the odds.
Young legs will begin the turnaround, just as Eddie Jones, Vlade, Van Exel and Peeler and the like helped set the stage to transition from Showtime to the Shaq/Kobe era. You need to build around young talent, and hopefully Clarkson and Randle can fit that bill.