Lakers: Wayne Ellington Out for the Season

Wayne Ellington will miss the final eight games of the 2014/15 season due to a Grade 1 shoulder separation

Not only did the Los Angeles Lakers lose their Wednesday night game against the New Orleans Pelicans, but the team also lost yet another player to injury. Guard Wayne Ellington suffered a grade 1 shoulder separation and will miss the remainder of the 2014/15 season, which made him the sixth LA Laker this season to go down and not get back up.

While playing the final eight games without Ellington may not have a significant impact on the season, the 27-year-old's injury again highlighted the plague that had taken hold of this season. The timeline of season-ending injuries is staggering.

Before the season even started, Steve Nash failed to make it to day no. 1 before calling it quits. Nash ended a Hall-of-Fame career due to a bad back that simply refused to improve.

Then, in their first game of the 2014/15 season, Julius Randle, who was the Lakers' exciting top draft pick, broke his leg. After a lengthy recovery, the former University of Kentucky forward would go back under the knife for foot surgery, so Randle lasted less than a game before he went down for the season.

Then, just shy of one month into the season, Xavier Henry tore his Achilles during practice. Henry would be waived to open up a roster spot once the Lakers claimed rookie Tarik Black off Waivers.

Shortly after that, Kobe Bryant underwent surgery on his torn rotator cuff, and the star of the Lakers missed the remainder of the season. Bryant hopes to be back ready in time for training camp.

Next, point guard Ronnie Price would head to the doctor's office for elbow surgery, and when the horn finally sounds on the Lakers' season, the 31-year-old point guard will have missed the final 27 games of the year due to a bad elbow.

At the same time that Price went to the doctor, Nick Young's knee began to bother the Lakers' sixth man. Doctors would eventually find a minor fracture in his kneecap, which did not require surgery. However, Young has already missed 19 games and has no clear timeline for a return. If he misses the remainder of the season, he will also have missed the final 27 games of the 2014/15 season.

On Thursday evening, the Lakers added Ellington to the list of players that enter the off-season injured. Including Nash and Henry, who have both been waived and no longer feature on the official team roster, the 2014/15 LA Lakers have lost six players to season ending injuries--excluding Young, as his return remains a (remote) possibility.

The Lakers have appealed to the league office for an exception that allows the team to add another roster player, and the NBA should have no qualms about providing the Lakers needed relief.

Contact Us