Watching the Los Angeles Lakers just became a lot less fun.
It’s hard enough to watch them as it is, what with Kobe Bryant’s swan song dictating the ebbs and flow of the NBA’s second-worst offense. But it’s going to be nigh unbearable now without the super explosive Larry Nance Jr. to provide the occasional highlight dunk.
Nance had missed five of the last eight games as he dealt with knee soreness, and the Lakers have now decided to shelve him until at least after All-Star break:
Larry Nance Jr. (knee) will be out until after the All-Star Break.
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) February 1, 2016
This is me, not happy.
Nance is averaging a stellar 10.3 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.5 steals per 36 minutes, according to Basketball-Reference. He’s already one of, if not the, most exciting Laker, and the team, per NBA.com, actually plays worse when he’s not on the floor.
If he can ever consistently work the three-point shot into his offensive arsenal, this kid could be something special. For now, we’ll have to hope that D’Angelo Russell starts living up to those Manu Ginobili-Stephen Curry comparisons, or that Julius Randle goes bonkers, or that Jordan Clarkson starts dunking more.
Or something.
