Los Angeles Lakers reserve center Jaxson Hayes suffered a left ankle sprain in practice Tuesday and will be reevaluated in 1-2 weeks, the team announced Wednesday. Hayes, 24, will also miss Wednesday’s home game against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Los Angeles Lakers center Jaxson Hayes was coming off a 12-point, six-rebound game against the Toronto Raptors
In addition to Hayes’ injury, Lakers coach JJ Redick told reporters Tuesday that another one of L.A.’s backup big men, Christian Wood, suffered a setback while ramping up his recovery from offseason surgery on his left knee and will miss at least another month.
Through 10 games (one start) this season, Hayes is averaging 6.3 points, a career-high 4.6 rebounds, and 17.5 minutes per contest while shooting 70.6% from the field and a career-best 78.9% at the free throw line.
Jaxson Hayes suffered a left ankle sprain in practice Tuesday and will miss the Grizzlies game tonight, per the Lakers. He’ll be reevaluated in 1-2 weeks, per the team.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) November 13, 2024
The Texas product is in the final season of the two-year, $4.63 million contract he signed last July. His $2.46 million player option for this season was exercised in June.
Hayes had one of his best performances of the season in Sunday’s 123-103 win over the Toronto Raptors. He recorded a season-high 12 points on 4-of-6 (66.7%) shooting from the field. The former Pelican also posted six rebounds and one block in 21 minutes off the bench.
Hayes replaced Anthony Davis against the Raptors after Davis was poked in his left eye
The 7-footer came in for Anthony Davis, who was poked in his left eye and exited. The Lakers outscored the Raptors by 21 points in the 21 minutes Hayes was on the court.
Davis visited an ophthalmologist on Monday, and he told reporters his eye feels “fine.” He is cleared to return for the Grizzlies matchup.
However, with Hayes and Wood out, the Lakers only have one center besides Davis: two-way player Christian Koloko.
Koloko, 24, missed the entire 2023-24 season because of a blood clot. The former second-round pick has played in three games since being cleared to return by the NBA’s “fitness to play” panel — two for the Lakers and one for the South Bay Lakers, the team’s G League affiliate.
