11-04-2012, 08:40 AM
LOS ANGELES -- Steve Nash has a small fracture in his left leg and will be out of the Los Angeles Lakers' lineup for at least another week.
The Lakers announced the results of the point guard's MRI exam Saturday. Nash suffered a small fracture to his fibula in a collision with Portland rookie Damian Lillard on Wednesday night. He missed the Lakers' 105-95 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night, when the Lakers dropped to 0-3 for the first time in 34 years.
Nash, 38, said he was "hopeful" to play in the Clippers game, and Lakers coach Mike Brown said the point guard had "made progress" in the days following his injury. That was before the team knew about the non-displaced fracture at the head of Nash's fibula.
The two-time NBA MVP joined the Lakers last June for his 17th NBA season, agreeing to a three-year, $27 million contract in a sign-and-trade with Phoenix. Nash's backup, Steve Blake, had two assists and eight points in 39 minutes against the Clippers.
Blake is averaging 5.0 points on 41.7 percent shooting and 3.7 assists in 26.7 minutes through the first three games. Nash was averaging 4.5 points on 33.3 percent shooting and 4.0 assists in 25 minutes per game before his injury.
The Lakers also have point guards Chris Duhon, Darius Morris and rookie Darius Johnson-Odom on their roster. Morris got the nod as Blake's backup against the Clippers and finished with seven points, one assist, one steal and two turnovers in 13 minutes.
"I thought he was responsible at times for the tempo of the game changing," Brown said of Morris. "I thought his pressure when he picked up full court and working the basketball was big for us."
The Lakers host the 0-2 Detroit Pistons on Sunday night.
http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story...red-fibula
The Lakers announced the results of the point guard's MRI exam Saturday. Nash suffered a small fracture to his fibula in a collision with Portland rookie Damian Lillard on Wednesday night. He missed the Lakers' 105-95 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night, when the Lakers dropped to 0-3 for the first time in 34 years.
Nash, 38, said he was "hopeful" to play in the Clippers game, and Lakers coach Mike Brown said the point guard had "made progress" in the days following his injury. That was before the team knew about the non-displaced fracture at the head of Nash's fibula.
The two-time NBA MVP joined the Lakers last June for his 17th NBA season, agreeing to a three-year, $27 million contract in a sign-and-trade with Phoenix. Nash's backup, Steve Blake, had two assists and eight points in 39 minutes against the Clippers.
Blake is averaging 5.0 points on 41.7 percent shooting and 3.7 assists in 26.7 minutes through the first three games. Nash was averaging 4.5 points on 33.3 percent shooting and 4.0 assists in 25 minutes per game before his injury.
The Lakers also have point guards Chris Duhon, Darius Morris and rookie Darius Johnson-Odom on their roster. Morris got the nod as Blake's backup against the Clippers and finished with seven points, one assist, one steal and two turnovers in 13 minutes.
"I thought he was responsible at times for the tempo of the game changing," Brown said of Morris. "I thought his pressure when he picked up full court and working the basketball was big for us."
The Lakers host the 0-2 Detroit Pistons on Sunday night.
http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story...red-fibula