The LA Lakers take on the Detroit Pistons on Friday evening, and the squad suddenly has an open roster spot. Also, Nick Young expects to play through injury.
Young, who sprained his left ring finger during Wednesday’s win in Brooklyn, expects to wear a splint on his left hand. After scoring 26 points, Young exited holding his hand, leaving the Lakers in a two-point game with one minute remaining.
Young’s scoring has been one of the most reliable components of the Lakers’ recent surge. LA has won four of its last five games, and Young is averaging 17.8 points per game during that stretch.
In other news, the Lakers waived Elias Harris on Friday. This means the Lakers are now carrying 14 players and have an open roster spot. Inevitably, LA will quickly jump to talk about Lamar Odom. We’ll hold off on that for now.
Harris was a bit player with the Lakers, and he only appeared in two games this season. He was unable to get on the scoreboard, but Harris did pull down one rebound, pass one assist, and swipe one steal in 11 total minutes.
Whether the spot was opened up to sign someone new, to help facilitate a trade, or to simply trim the squad remains to be seen.
To his credit, Harris was a hard worker and would consistently practice with player development coach Mark Madsen ahead of games. Harris would typically join Ryan Kelly in performing extra drills in the two hours leading up to every home game.
Harris averaged 10.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in five 2013 Summer League starts for the Lakers.
