The Los Angeles Lakers had Kobe Bryant and D'Angelo Russell out on Tuesday against the Golden State Warriors with injury issues, but the team expects both players to return on Thursday night against the Kings. The Lakers may look at making some trades this year at the deadline and players like Nick Young, Brandon Bass and Lou Williams could be potential targets.
The Lakers came into the game against the Warriors after winning two straight, but that ended with a loss against the Golden State on Tuesday. Bryant missed his third game in a row while dealing with a sore shoulder, while Russell was out with a sore throat, according to Pro Basketball Talk. Head coach Byron Scott said that Bryant is considered "day to day" with the shoulder injury and that Russell likely will play on Thursday against the Kings.
Scott said that Bryant had the chance to play on Tuesday, but that he felt sore before tip-off and was held out for the Lakers. The team won two in a row without Bryant and the team next will hit the road against Sacramento before playing against the Thunder, Jazz and Pelicans at home. The Los Angeles Daily News reports that Bryant could deal with the shoulder issue for the duration of the season and it could force Byron Scott to sit Bryant on certain days to keep him fresh. Bryant has played in 29 games this season and is averaging 17 points per contest.
Russell sat out with an illness on Tuesday and Scott said that there is no major concern that Russell will miss significant time. Russell has been improving steadily over the season after some tough play at the beginning of the year and Scott told the Los Angeles Times that he is looking for Russell to be "much more of a well-rounded basketball player." Russell is still just 19 and has time to develop for the Lakers and Scott is trying to get Russell to handle the offense better at the point guard position.
https://www.latimes.com/sports/lakers/la-sp-lakers-report-20160106-story.html
The Lakers may look at making trades this year at the deadline if there is a chance to add some draft picks or cap relief, as the team is continuing to rebuild for the future. Bleacher Report writes that Nick Young, Roy Hibbert, Ryan Kelly and Robert Sacre are potential options to be traded. Steve Kyler at Basketball Insiders writes that Brandon Bass could be a target to get moved, but that the Lakers are likely not looking to trade Lou Williams.
The Los Angeles Daily News reports that the Lakers are likely going to keep Metta World Peace, Tarik Black and Marcelo Huertas even though those players have nonguaranteed contracts, Thursday is the deadline for teams in the league to waive players with nonguaranteed contracts.