Henry set to hand D’Antoni boost with return on Sunday.
The Los Angeles Lakers have revealed that Kobe Bryant will be re-evaluated at the end of the week as he continues his recovery from a knee injury.
The 35-year-old told reporters in Boston last week that his injured left knee will be re-evaluated in early February, however, that date has now been brought forward to January 27 or 28, when the Lakers medical staff will examine his knee after the team return from their seven-game road trip.
Bryant suffered the injury on December 17, with MRI scans later confirming that he had sustained a fracture of the lateral tibial plateau.
It was a bitter blow for the league veteran as he has now only played in six games so far this season, averaging 13.8 points, 6.3 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 42.5 percent shooting after initially returning from a ruptured Achilles.
While Bryant will likely still be sidelined until next week, Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni received more positive injury news after it was reported that Xavier Henry could return to play against the New York Knicks on Sunday.
Henry has been sidelined since December 29 with a bruised right knee, but he did return to practice on Wednesday although D’Antoni revealed that he will likely step up his intensity first before making a return to the court.
Steve Nash, Steve Blake and Jordan Farmar all remain injured too as the Lakers are starved of their back-court options, with the trio likely to be sidelined for some time yet as they recover from back pain, elbow surgery and a hamstring tear respectively.
Nevertheless, it is Bryant’s return that is arguably the biggest concern at this stage, as the Lakers legend continues to be voted for in the All-Star Game ballot.
COMMENTS