Lakers Injury Update: Kyle Kuzma undergoing MRI for back injury, held out of practice

Kyle Kuzma was a late-scratch for the Los Angeles Lakers Wednesday night, missing what was an entertaining overtime loss to the Golden State Warriors. Kuzma “tweaked his back,” as Lakers sideline reporter Mike Trudell put it, during his pregame routine and was ruled out with back spasms.

This marked the first missed game of the season for Kuzma, but ultimately is a small price to pay to make sure it’s nothing more than a minor issue. The Lakers held Kuzma out of practice on Thursday, and he will be undergoing a “precautionary” MRI, the team announced.

Back injuries are never good, but for the time being the word out of El Segundo is this is nothing serious. Kuzma suffering the injury during a pregame routine, as opposed to during a game, is reason to be optimistic that’s the very case. The MRI should hopefully give the Lakers and Kuz’ the all-clear before getting the rookie sensation back on the court.

The Lakers are off until Saturday, so we should get an update on his status well in advance of their game against the Nuggets in Denver. Having Kuzma in the rotation for a weekend back-to-back would be a big boost for the Lakers.