Lakers Lose Starter to Injury in Game 2 Against Rockets

The Los Angeles Lakers will have to create a backup plan for the starter they lost to an injury in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

Starting center JaVale McGee and reserve guard Dion Waiters sustained injuries during the game against the Houston Rockets. McGee played eight minutes and left the game due to “ankle pain.” The veteran is having an MRI to determin the severity of his injury.

Having McGee around was great, but the Lakers had to find a replacement for him. Lakers head coach decided to go with a smaller look to neutralize the Rockets’ small-ball approach.

JaVale McGee is getting an MRI on his left ankle, Frank Vogel says. The Lakers want to see how Dion Waiters’ strained left groin responds to treatment overnight.

— Kyle Goon (@kylegoon) September 7, 2020

This injury didn’t stop McGee from having a great time on the sideline.

Javale's Celebrations are too funny ?

Lakers Vs. Rockets? Nah. Javale McGee in 4. pic.twitter.com/Bid9rnpJFG

— Pickswise (@Pickswise) September 7, 2020

The Lakers need solution for losing their starter to injury

Waiters played three minutes off the bench before getting injured. He had a pulled left groin.

JaVale McGee is out for the game due to left ankle pain, joining Dion Waiters (groin).

— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) September 7, 2020

Vogel doesn’t say much about his lineup, but McGee’s limited minutes on the court and Howard’s presence on the bench said enough.

“I’ll keep my opinions on our lineups kind of close to my vest right now,” Vogel said. “We continue to evaluate. We got off to a strong start in the game, so the starting lineup did have a positive plus-minus, but we’ll continue to evaluate what the best way to best way to beat the Houston Rockets is.”

Waiters played five minutes in the first game and went 0-of-3 from the field. He hadn’t played a game for LA until the arrival in the bubble. Waiters scored 10 points in 35 minutes during the playoffs. In some of the seeding games, he hit double-digits.

Rajon Rondo is back, and he had a good performance in Game 2. The veteran helped propel the team during the first half and led LA in plus-minus.

“Rajon is one of the smartest players in the league, and obviously our guys’ IQ raises when he’s on the court, so he’s definitely going to help us this series,” Vogel said.

Anthony Davis agrees with the Lakers head coach. According to him, Rondo is a great player who “knows the game very well.”