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The Los Angeles Lakers have ruled Lonzo Ball out of the Las Vegas Summer League championship game, reports Lakers sideline reporter Mike Trudell. Ball suffered the injury against the Dallas Mavericks in the semifinals and sat out most of the second half.
It’s a disappointing end to an incredibly impressive summer league run from the No. 2 pick. Ball established himself as one of the greatest passers to ever tear through Las Vegas, averaging a summer league-high 9.3 assists per game. He’s the only player in history to have more than one 10-assist games during Las Vegas Summer League play.
Ultimately Ball has already shown enough through summer league, and with this being the Lakers’ fifth game in six nights, it makes sense to sit him out if he’s still feeling tightness.
The Lakers will take a crack at winning it all in Las Vegas against the Portland Trail Blazers without their dominant point guard, likely leaning on Kyle Kuzma who has been crushing it in his own right. Expect Alex Caruso to play big minutes as well with Ball out and the guard rotation being incredibly thin.