The Los Angeles Lakers are preparing for the NBA bubble games but the injury bug has already started. Rajon Rondo injured his thumb and will be out six to eight weeks, leaving a big void in the point guard position.
Rondo will be undergoing surgery to address his thumb injury and could be back by the second round of the NBA playoffs at the earliest. Hence, this means the purple and gold are left with Quinn Cook and Alex Caruso to man the point. LeBron James could be made to orchestrate the plays, meaning coach Frank Vogel will have to make adjustments moving forward.
According to ESPN, Rondo suffered a fractured thumb. Though he can return by the second round of the playoffs, the question there is how fit he would be. The 34-year-old's veteran expertise has rubbed off on Cook and Caruso but it remains that the two may not be enough to hold up the Lakers backcourt. An option for the Lakers is to skim the free-agent market and give some players a short-term contract. From the list of available free agents, the name of Isaiah Thomas stands out. Though he has been struggling to recall his old form, he is an option that Rob Pelinka could look into.
Adding I.T. would mean having to adjust to the system of Vogel. If the Lakers are not open to adding a new player in the mix and choose to wait for Rondo to return, James is the plausible player to pick up the slack. However, that could have consequences. One is that The King may have to sacrifice scoring and focus on passing the ball. If he opts to score first, other players may not be as effective in helping out in that department.
But the worst-case scenario is overworking James. If he ends up having to carry the Lakers on his shoulders, the wear-and-tear could show come the latter stages of the NBA playoffs. He could show fatigue or be prone to injury if the Lakers rely on him too much once the bubble league starts.
Before looking that far ahead, there is the question of whether the NBA bubble league can kick off successfully. The past days have seen players testing positive for COVID-19, a problem some teams are facing. The latest player to reveal he was positive is Russell Westbrook of the Houston Rockets. However, the former NBA MVP says he is feeling pretty well via NBA.com. Like most players, he is now under quarantine and will just wait until he is cleared to return.
