Andrew Bynum appears to be on his way to making his way back to the Lakers’ lineup. Bynum was able to participate in five-on-five scrimmages during the last two practices. Bynum is set to start playing again sometime this month. However, a specific date has not been set. Considering the Lakers play six road games in the next ten days, there will not be much practice time for Bynum to continue his recovery. This could potentially delay his return.
Make no mistake about it, the Lakers need Bynum now more than ever. With back-up center Theo Ratliff also sidelined with a knee injury, the only legitimate back up big man the Lakers have is rookie Derrick Caracter. This has led to Pau Gasol having to play more minutes than usual, leading to early season fatigue.
Andrew Bynum is an essential ingredient for both the Lakers long-term and short-term goals. It will be hard to win a third straight championship without him, and it may be hard to keep other players off the injured list if he does not return soon.
Joshua Sexton is a lifelong basketball fanatic, who watches as many games as possible. In addition, He has played and coached the game at the high school level. He has recently started writing about the game of basketball.
