The Los Angeles Lakers are coming off their worst performance of the season, dropping a 121-92 decision to Western Conference leaders Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night.
While the team continues to play without LeBron James, who is expected to make his season debut soon after dealing with a sciatic issue, the Lakers also provided an update on promising rookie Adou Thiero. Thiero has been sidelined since the offseason while recovering from left knee surgery.
Coach JJ Redick had previously expressed hope that Thiero could return during the Lakers' current road trip. Now, three games into the five-game stretch, Thiero-previously listed as doubtful-has been upgraded to questionable for Friday night's matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans, signaling that his NBA debut could be imminent.
Back in September, Redick spoke about Thiero's injury and the team's plan for his rookie season, noting that it would take some time for him to fully recover from knee surgery.
"We've just got to manage him coming off knee surgery, and to be quite frank, he wasn't our player when he had the surgery," Redick said in September. "So we didn't have control over what he did in the three months after the surgery. It's really about playing the long game with him.
“We look at this year as a developmental year and there's no reason for us to push his body and create a long-term problem. His knee is in a really good spot, we just want to be really careful."
The Lakers selected Thiero with the 36th overall pick in the draft, trading up to secure him out of Arkansas after his junior season under John Calipari. Thiero had previously followed Calipari from Kentucky, where he spent two seasons before transferring to Arkansas.
His two seasons at Kentucky were a mix of development and some frustration as he worked to carve out a significant role. However, at Arkansas, he made a name for himself, averaging 27.5 minutes per game, 15.1 points-a nearly eight-point jump from the previous year-5.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.6 steals, while shooting 54.5% from the field.
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