Lakers coach Frank Vogel confirms that point guard Rajon Rondo will be on the active roster for tonight’s game, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.
Rondo, who hasn’t played in a game since March 10, has been sidelined since suffering a broken right thumb that required surgery shortly after the team arrived in Orlando. He returned to the Disney World campus earlier this month and cleared quarantine shortly before the start of the series with the Trail Blazers.
Rondo will be a welcome addition for a Lakers backcourt that is missing defensive specialist Avery Bradley and that turned in a poor shooting performance in a Game 1 loss. Rondo averaged 7.1 points, 3.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 48 games this season and has a history of impressive playoff performances.
August 21st, 2020 at 8:05pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum
Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo, still recovering from a July 16 thumb surgery, has been listed as merely “questionable” for the third game in the team’s playoff series against the Trail Blazers on Saturday, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link). With starting guard Avery Bradley opting out of the NBA’s Orlando restart and Rondo injured, the Lakers have been fairly short-handed at the point.
In addition to claiming the top three spots in the 2020 NBA draft based on this year’s lottery results, the Timberwolves, Warriors, and Hornets are three of eight teams that will own more than two draft picks this fall.
As our full 2020 draft order shows, the Sixers lead the way with five picks, while the Kings, Pelicans, and Celtics have four apiece. Like Minnesota, Golden State, and Charlotte, the Knicks also hold three selections. On the other end of the spectrum, the Rockets are the only team without a 2020 draft pick.
To present a clearer picture of which teams are most – and least – stocked with picks for the 2020 NBA draft, we’ve rounded up all 60 picks by team in the space below. Let’s dive in…
August 20th, 2020 at 7:31pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum
Though the Lakers suffered a surprising 100-93 loss to the Trail Blazers in the first game of their conference quarterfinals series on Tuesday, head coach Frank Vogel has indicated that he will not make any adjustments to his current starting lineup ahead of tonight’s second “home” game, according to Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
McGee played just 12 minutes on Tuesday. Backup power forward Kyle Kuzma, meanwhile, logged 30 minutes of game action, with Davis shifting to a center role when playing alongside Kuzma. Point guard Alex Caruso played 29 minutes off the bench, the same amount of time as Caldwell-Pope and six more minutes than sharpshooter Green.
Backup center Dwight Howard and power forward Markieff Morris also logged more time than McGee, a solid post defender without much offensive range. Starting Davis at center, with either Kuzma or Caruso replacing McGee in the starting lineup, could present a unique opportunity for the Lakers to spread the floor against Portland.
Backup point guard Rajon Rondo, who has been recovering from a fractured right thumb suffered five weeks ago, will remain inactive for tonight’s game. Rondo was medically cleared for action on August 17. Rondo had the thumb surgically repaired on July 16. He has yet to suit up for the Lakers during the team’s summer games.
Vogel also noted that he will find playing time for recent waiver additions Dion Waiters and J.R. Smith, per Mark Medina of USA Today (Twitter link). In the first game of the series, Waiters saw the court for just one minute, and took no field goal attempts, while Smith did not play at all.
Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo, who hasn’t played this summer due to a fractured thumb, is listed as questionable for Game 2 vs. Portland on Thursday night, tweets Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times.
A dominant regular season leading up to the stoppage of the NBA’s season in March all but locked up the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference for the Lakers entering the summer restart. However, the team hasn’t quite looked like itself since play resumed. LeBron James‘ squad went 3-5 during the seeding games and dropped Game 1 of its first-round series to the No. 8 Trail Blazers.
The Lakers’ shooting doomed them in Game 1. Despite out-rebounding the Blazers, winning the turnover battle, and moving the ball better, the Lakers just couldn’t put the ball in the basket, finishing with an abysmal shooting line of .351/.156/.645.
L.A. still only lost by seven points, and the team’s shooting won’t be that bad every game. But beyond James and Anthony Davis, many of the Lakers’ secondary scorers are streaky, including Danny Green and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who went a combined 4-of-21 from the floor on Tuesday. Additionally, Avery Bradley‘s absence means the club is without its top perimeter defender — that’s not insignificant in a series against Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum.
In a discussion about the Lakers’ situation today, ESPN’s writers expressed mixed opinions on whether it’s too early to start worrying about the team. As Kevin Pelton points out, L.A. is still getting the same quality shots it got during the regular season, and it seems likely those shots will start dropping at some point. However, Nick Friedell and Andre Snellings view the Lakers’ roster as top-heavy and have questions about the supporting cast.
Neither Friedell nor Royce Young necessarily expects the Lakers to fall in the first round to the eighth-seeded Blazers. However, both ESPN writers expressed skepticism that L.A. should still be considered a prime championship frontrunner.
It’s worth noting that even before the Lakers’ Game 1 loss to Portland, sports books had generally started listing the Clippers as title favorites over the Lakers, with some moving the Bucks ahead as well, per David Purdum of ESPN.
What do you think? Has your opinion of the Lakers changed at all since the restart began? Do you expect them to start firing on all cylinders again any day now? How confident do you feel right now in forecasting a Finals appearance – or win – for the Lakers?
Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!
The Lakers‘ loss in their playoff opener is raising concerns that the team may not be built for the postseason, writes Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. The top seed in the West got off to a rocky start Tuesday night as a late lead slipped away against the Trail Blazers.
The starkest difference between the teams was 3-point shooting, as Portland hit 38.2% of its attempts beyond the arc while the Lakers made a miserable 15.6%. Despite having a short-handed backcourt due to the absence of Avery Bradley and an injury to Rajon Rondo, coach Frank Vogel barely used two additions who were brought to the team to provide long-distance shooting. Dion Waiters played just one minute last night, and J.R. Smith wasn’t used at all.
“We’re getting good looks. It’s just a matter of taking our time and knocking them down,” Anthony Davis said after the loss. “That’s been our whole little M.O. in the restart, not being able to consistently knock down the three-ball. … We have to make sure that when the ball comes to us, we take our time and knock down the shot. That’s the only way we’re going to clear that paint.”
There’s more on the two L.A. teams:
LeBron James had a historic night with 23 points, 17 rebounds and 16 assists, but he didn’t take over the game the way “Playoff LeBron” normally would, observes Joe Vardon of The Athletic, who theorizes that James might be a different player without crowd reactions. “Like I continue to say, this is different from the aspect of we’re in the bubble with no fans,” James said. “But as far as me being locked in on the game plan, that doesn’t change. Not one bit. Me going out and making plays, playing at a high level, trying to help our team win — that was the same.”
Clippers center Montrezl Harrell talks about his grief over his grandmother’s recent death with Mark Medina of USA Today. Harrell left the Disney World campus July 17 and wound up missing all the team’s scrimmages and its eight seeding games. He returned and completed a seven-day quarantine in time for Monday’s playoff opener. “I kind of reflected back after the game once I got to my room,” Harrell said. “That’s when I did the majority of my reflecting. More emotions came out then. It’s just different having somebody here who just means everything in the world to you, and you (were) constantly in communication with them every other day.”
Coach Doc Rivers reacted to an accusation from Mavericks center Kristaps Porzingis that the Clippers intentionally provoke their opponents, Medina writes in a separate piece. Porzingis was ejected from Game 1 for getting involved in a dispute between Luka Doncic and Marcus Morris. “We have some guys who are agitators. I think that’s good,” Rivers said. “But I can guarantee you that wasn’t on our game-plan list. That’s just ridiculous.”
Veteran Lakers assistant Lionel Hollins was not permitted to coach at the Orlando campus but he’s still involved in the team’s planning and preparation, as Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times details. Hollins watches practices live and prepares scouting reports with two other assistants, one of whom is in Orlando. The 66-year-old was deemed a high risk for the coronavirus due to preexisting conditions.
The Trail Blazers will be down a starter for Game 1 of their first-round series against the top-seeded Lakers on Tuesday. Power forward Zach Collins will sit out due to left ankle inflammation, Marc J. Spears of ESPN tweets. Wenyen Gabriel will start in Collins’ place.
Lakers superstar LeBron James believes this will be his most difficult playoff run, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. James sees a number of challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic and the league being forced to play in a neutral venue. “As far as me locking in on an opponent and individuals, that hasn’t changed. What’s different is this is the environment, not home,” he said. “Not with my family, not in my own bed, I’m not in our own practice facility. I’m not preparing to be at Staples [Center] tomorrow with our fans. I’m not with a lot of things that’s essential to my everyday regimen.”
3:20pm: Rondo has been medically cleared to play but is unlikely to see any action in Game 1 against Portland, Vogel said today (Twitter link via McMenamin).
9:05am: Approximately five weeks after suffering a fractured right thumb, Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo is back on the NBA’s campus at Walt Disney World and is set to clear his four-day quarantine on Monday, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. However, as McMenamin notes, it’s not yet clear when Rondo will be able to play.
“I’m not sure exactly when he’s going to be available to be in uniform,” head coach Frank Vogel said during a Sunday conference call. “We’ll get him on the court and see where he’s at. But no specific timetable yet on him.”
When Rondo underwent surgery on his fractured thumb on July 16, the team estimated that he would return to basketball activities in about six-to-eight weeks. That means he still may be at least a week or two away from returning to the court.
Teammate Anthony Davis suggested as much on Sunday, telling reporters that Rondo is “not going to be on the floor with us” for L.A.’s first-round series against Portland, as McMenamin relays. However, AD added that the veteran point guard will “be there helping us out.” According to McMenamin, Vogel said on Sunday that Rondo has actively participated in the club’s coaches’ meetings since being injured.