Lakers' Pau Gasol sidelined due to injury

On Wednesday night, the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Brooklyn Nets, but with that victory, they ended up losing a teammate. Forward Pau Gasol sustained a torn plantar fascia while attempting to defend the basket against Nets’ Brook Lopez.

This season is looking worse and worse for this team as time moves on. Dwight Howard played against the Boston Celtics even though he is not healthy due to a shoulder injury. This team is in need of a very long break so their players can recover. The Los Angeles Times reports that Gasol wrote on Twitter, "I'm hoping to recover asap so I can be back with the team and keep fighting until the end of the season. #GoLakers #AlwaysPositive.” It’s good for him to stay positive because when this team keeps losing, they’re really going to need all the positivity they can get.

Kobe Bryant mentioned that the Lakers’ goal is to win a championship every year, and any year that it doesn’t happen, it’s a lost season. This season, Gasol is simply not fitting into the system that head coach Mike D’Antoni set up. Even when they gave up D’Antoni’s offense, Gasol still remained in a sixth man position until Howard was sidelined.

According to the Associated Press, Gasol is scoring under 13.5 points per game and grabbing about eight rebounds per game. He’s averaging career lows and is most likely going to be traded. Once he’s a free agent, it’s extremely doubtful that he would return as a Laker if they kept him.