Things could have hardly gone worse for the Lakers on Tuesday. In the final minutes of a blowout loss to the Suns, the first loss the team has suffered in the NBA Cup, Jaxson Hayes went down with an apparent foot injury following a dunk.
Hayes had only just returned to the lineup after missing multiple weeks with a sprained ankle.
It was a fairly innocuous play that led to the injury. After a pass from Cam Reddish found Hayes open under the basket, the big man jumped for the dunk and immediately screamed out in pain.
While he finished the play, he immediately crumpled to the ground in pain. He would eventually need to be helped off the floor and straight to the locker room.
After the game, the Lakers announced that Hayes had reaggravated the right ankle sprain that he had initially injured. The team would provide an update on his status ahead of Wednesday’s game against the Spurs.
The Lakers say that Jaxson Hayes reaggravated the same ankle issue that kept him out of the lineup for two weeks. His status will be updated tomorrow afternoon ahead of the second night of the back-to-back in San Antonio.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) November 27, 2024
There was no landing on the foot of a player or the ankle twisting. In reality, it was hard to see anything that would have led to the injury. However, if it’s a reaggravation of the injury, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be back on the court anytime soon.
As of now, there is no indication of how long exactly he’ll be out. The Lakers survived his absence in November thanks to solid play from Christian Koloko.
However, can they afford to do that again ahead of arguably their toughest month of the season? It’s a tough situation for the Lakers and Hayes both.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.