The Associated Press is reporting that Luke Walton could be out for the rest of the playoffs with a torn ligament in his ankle:
The Los Angeles Lakers' forward sprained his ankle in Saturday night's Game 3 at Utah. He had an MRI this morning, which revealed the partial tear of the deltoid ligament.
Walton, a reserve, is out indefinitely and will be re-evaluated in one week.
Walton has received some criticism here on SS&R, but I want to stress that it is never good to lose a player, especially one that PJ relies on for 10+ minutes a game. This injury is especially concerning because SG/SF are the positions where the Lakers have the least amount of depth. The SF rotation is now shortened to Kobe and Ariza, with Odom possibly joining them to give Kobe some rest. Here is some more from the LAT that includes some Jackson commentary. If Ariza gets in foul trouble like he did in Game 3 4, expect to see Kobe on the floor for pretty much the entire game and mostly at the SF position.
We wish Luke a speedy recovery and hope that he can return by the end of the second round.
Go Purple & Gold!