5:38pm: Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Nance Jr. will undergo surgery on his fractured hand and, at this point, is expected to miss four to six weeks.
8:20pm: Lakers power forward Larry Nance Jr. will be sidelined for the foreseeable future, having broken his hand against Portland, the Lakers announced in a press release late on Thursday night. Nance’s injury, which occurred late in the third quarter when he attempted to block a shot, was diagnosed as a fracture of the second metacarpal on his left hand.
It’s a tough blow for the Lakers and for Nance, who had earned the starting power forward job in the preseason and was off to a good start. In eight games, the 24-year-old has averaged a career-best 10.6 PPG and 7.5 RPG to go along with a .614 FG%.
“I obviously feel so terrible for him,” head coach Luke Walton said. “He’s been playing so solid for us. It’s unfortunate it’s going to hurt the team. He’s been working so hard.”
Although the Lakers have yet to put a specific timetable on Nance’s possible return, Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times notes (via Twitter) that a fracture to the second metacarpal generally takes about four to six weeks to fully heal. In the meantime, Julius Randle and Kyle Kuzma are the top candidates to take over Nance’s spot in the starting lineup.
Randle needs our of LA sorry
Damn! BIG blow! Our best defender.
Kuzma might be able to fill in for him.