LOS ANGELES — The injury report hasn’t been kind to the Lakers this season, but it has certainly been kinder than it was on Monday.
The Lakers gave two discouraging updates prior to their game against the Utah Jazz: Carmelo Anthony missed his third consecutive game with lower back soreness, and Kendrick Nunn’s rehab progress hit a new hurdle and is now expected to take even longer.
At least for Anthony, his condition remains day-to-day. Coach Frank Vogel said the 37-year-old, who is averaging 13.2 points per game, is “getting closer” to a return, but his back has been too tight to play. The Lakers have missed his scoring, Vogel admitted, as well as the spacing he provides other players on the court.
Nunn’s right knee bone bruise has sidelined him for the entire regular season so far, and Vogel said when he “ramped up his activity” that his knee “didn’t respond well with it.” He initially used the word “setback” before trying to roll the term back.
“Bone bruises are tricky, and his timeline is delayed,” Vogel said. “Still have no firm timeline on it, but he’s pulled back from workload until it calms down.”
Nunn’s progress has been frustratingly slow since he was injured in October. The Lakers have suggested he’ll be a valuable contributor whenever he gets healthy: He averaged 14.6 points and 2.6 assists while shooting 38.1% from 3-point range for the Miami Heat last season.
Vogel said the Lakers were planning to evaluate All-Star big man Anthony Davis on Monday night and did not have a pregame update. Davis has been out with an MCL sprain in his left knee since Dec. 17.
VOGEL ACKNOWLEDGES FRUSTRATION
Vogel gave what might be his most honest assessment of frustration on the heels of a 37-point blowout loss to the Nuggets on Saturday night in Denver. After the coaching staff laid out the players for their defensive mistakes against Sacramento, they dug themselves deeper by giving up 133 points to the hot-shooting Nuggets.
Vogel, who coached the Lakers to the No. 1 defensive rating in the league last season, said he thought the Lakers got beat in different ways against Sacramento (giving up 70 points in the paint) and Denver (letting the Nuggets go 23 for 40 from behind the arc). But he acknowledged that the game, which extended their losing streak to three games, was particularly frustrating.
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“Not seeing the results wears on you, I will say that strongly,” he said. “It is very difficult to put in as much hours as we put in to get our group playing at a super high level and to fall short, but you have to have a marathon approach with staying with the mindset to continue to grow your group. It’s not always gonna happen overnight. You want it to.”
The Lakers went through another passionate film session on Monday morning, Vogel said, during which the team went over the defensive flaws again: “Hit ’em again, until these habits form. It doesn’t happen overnight.”
Even before that, however, LeBron James was embarrassed by Saturday’s performance upon reflection: The 37-year-old four-time MVP tweeted an apology to Lakers fans on Sunday night with a promise to be better.
“I think it’s just a sign of great leadership and understanding that nobody is happy with how we’ve played, especially in that Denver game,” Vogel said. “And we’re committed to being better. Our guys are definitely working. Our coaching staff is working around the clock and our group is working to improve our habits and improve the quality of the play on the floor.”