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Alex Caruso didn’t travel with the Los Angeles Lakers to San Antonio on Tuesday, according to Dan Woike of the Los Angleles Times. The Lakers have already listed Caruso as out for their game against the Spurs on Wednesday night.
Caruso wasn’t with his team when they played the Portland Trail Blazers at Staples Center on Monday, either, due to the NBA’s healthy and safety protocols. Caruso was originally listed as questionable on Monday due to a right hand strain he suffered against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday, but Frank Vogel announced before tip-off on Sunday that Caruso’s absence wasn’t a result of his injury.
“Alex isn’t going to play tonight, but not because of the wrist,” Vogel said. “He’s not playing because of the league’s health and safety protocols.”
When asked for clarification on what that meant specifically, Vogel said “Forrest Gump: that’s all I can say about that.” There has been no update on Caruso’s availability since Monday.
The NBA updated its health and safety protocols in December to include procedures on how teams should deal with the coronavirus. Since then, any mention of the league’s health and safety protocols has led people to believe that a player tested positive for the coronavirus, but that hasn’t always been the case. At this time, there’s no reason to believe Caruso tested positive for the coronavirus.
Outside of Caruso, there’s only one name on the Lakers’ injury report for Tuesday night’s contest: LeBron James, who has been listed as questionable with a left ankle sprain. James’ status was the same before the game on Monday and he played, but the Lakers may decide against letting him playing three games in four days on a bad ankle.
James’ status will be updated before tip-off on Wednesday, which is at 5:30 p.m.
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