Your Los Angeles Lakers have gotten a lucky injury break ahead of their first matchup against ex-LA head coach Mike Brown's Sacramento Kings, their longtime Pacific Division nemesis.
Per James Ham of ESPN 1320 Sacramento, reserve power forward Trey Lyles has officially been sidelined for his third straight game to start the 2023-24 NBA season due to a strained left calf.
Both the Kings and Lakers sport identical 1-1 records at this young phase of the season.
Lyles, a 6'9" journeyman stretch-four out of Kentucky, has carved out a significant role on an upstart Sacramento club during his year-and-a-half tenure with the team. He was flipped to Sacramento by the Detroit Pistons midway through the 2021-22 season. Last year, he saw his playing time slightly reduced (to 16.9 minutes from 22.8) by Brown, during the latter's first year as the club's head coach.
The 27-year-old still submitted solid output last season, while his per-36 minute averages were virtually identical in both of his years with the Kings. Across 74 regular season contests, he logged averages of 7.6 points on .458/.363/.815 shooting splits, along with 4.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists.
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