Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma will be held out of Wednesday night's matchup against the Orlando Magic due to soreness and discomfort from an ankle sprain that occurred in a game against the Washington Wizards earlier this season, according to a report from Mike Trudell.
Kyle Kuzma is out tonight in Orlando due to soreness and discomfort from the left ankle sprain that happened vs. Washington (11/29). The medical staff is holding him out to promote healing; he’ll be day-to-day moving forward.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) December 11, 2019
Kuzma has been dealing with this ankle issue since Nov. 29, but he continued to play through it. Hopefully, a night off will give him some time to recover. He'll be listed as day-to-day going forward, which leaves his status for Friday night's game against the Miami Heat in question. Danny Green and Jared Dudley will likely see upticks in their roles so long as Kuzma is out of commission.
Though the Lakers are playing well, Kuzma's production has fallen off a bit from that of last season's. The former No. 27 overall pick has made 20 appearances in this campaign (one start), racking up averages of 11.1 points on 43.3 percent shooting from the field (36.0 percent from beyond the arc), 3.4 rebounds and just under one assist (0.9) in 23.1 minutes per outing.
Some of Kuzma's statistical decline this season is due to the Lakers' acquisition of Anthony Davis in the offseason. With Davis and LeBron James running the show, it simply means Kuzma is getting fewer touches.
Wednesday night's Lakers-Magic game is scheduled to tip inside the Amway Center at 7:00 p.m. ET. Los Angeles' last loss on the road came over seven weeks ago (to the Clippers inside the Staples Center), so they'll be looking to build on that record.
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