The Lakers have been without their backup bigs in Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes for multiple weeks, but both are beginning to make progress toward returns
Health has been an issue for the Lakers all season. Their two stars, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, have been relatively available, but a few key reserve players have missed significant time.
Christian Wood has been recovering from knee surgery and has yet to make his season debut for the Lakers. Jarred Vanderbilt has also been out all year and Hayes has missed the last nine games due to an ankle sprain.
Lakers coach JJ Redick spoke after Tuesday’s practice and didn’t have any updates on Vando, but did shed some light on how Wood and Hayes are recovering.
“Jaxson is continuing to work to strengthen his ankle,” Redick said. “We’ll likely have an update early next week in terms of what a return to play looks like. But right now, the focus for him is just on strengthening that ankle.
“And then with Christian, he continues to progress. We don’t have necessarily a set date for his return to play with us, but the progress has been good. He’s going stay back and do live against the coaches, the coaching associates while we’re in Sacramento. Which is a big step for him.”
Redick stating that Wood is making strides in his recovery is huge. He suffered a setback during his rehab in November and went past the four weeks for his re-evaluation without any significant updates on his status.
This is the first time we’ve heard some undeniably good news about Wood, an indication that he’s on track to return to the court.
Regarding the Hayes’ news, it’s no surprise he is still out. He initially missed six games because of the sprain, then returned for one game and re-sprained it. It is probably wise to exercise caution with Hayes.
With Wood being out all season so far and Hayes missing extended time, the Lakers have not had any bigs on the main roster, instead relying on two-way players Armel Traore and Christian Koloko.
It’s good that both are progressing forward because the Lakers need them back as soon as possible.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.
