By Michael Wallace
Grind City Media
LOS ANGELES – Grizzlies center Marc Gasol continues to work through soreness in his left ankle and his status remains questionable heading into Tuesday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Gasol went through the Grizzlies’ full practice Monday at UCLA and participated in the team’s morning walk-through in addition to another workout on Tuesday, but it remains unclear if Memphis’ leading scorer and rebounder will attempt to play.
What’s clear is that Gasol is pushing to make himself available and would prefer not to miss any time as the team finishes up a four-game California trip with back-to-back games Tuesday and Wednesday against the Lakers and Clippers before wrapping up Friday in Golden State against the Warriors.
“It’s still tender,” Grizzlies’ coach David Fizdale said of Gasol’s ankle. “I think he’ll be questionable right up until game time. They (trainers) went to work on him right away … and it’s been continuous treatment all the way through, because he doesn’t want to miss a game. So we’ll see.”
Gasol was injured in the opening game of the trip during Saturday’s win in Sacramento, where he stumbled early in the third quarter after getting tangled near midcourt with Kings’ center Demarcus Cousins. Gasol immediately left the game, did not return and finished with two points, two rebounds and two assists in 21 minutes. An X-ray he underwent in Sacramento was negative, and Gasol has received round-the-clock treatment on the ankle the past three days.
After going through recent workouts and tests, Gasol said the ankle remains sore and his lateral movement continues to be limited. Any foot concerns remain a sensitive issue for Gasol, who underwent season-ending surgery on his right foot last February and has recovered to have the most productive start of his career. Gasol is averaging career highs in points (19.5), assists (4.1) and three-point shooting, where he has made 49 of 118 attempts (.415) from beyond the arc.
“I knew it was going to be sore,” Gasol said of how the ankle has responded the past few days. “When you play for a while, you know what kind of pain you’re getting, depending on the motion when you sprain it. I knew it wasn’t something really bad, but it was painful. When I’m (moving) on a straight line, it’s pretty good. But when you try to move and pivot out of it, it’s still (stiff).”
Gasol said he will continue to test the ankle up until just before Tuesday’s game and then consult with the training staff. He mentioned that coping with the pain will be a challenge because “I do everything off my left foot” in terms of balance and strength. Earlier this season, Gasol had already been on a minutes’ management program aimed to gradually build his workload in games as he regained strength and conditioning from the right foot surgery.
The Grizzlies had especially monitored his minutes and carried a precautious approach with his status entering games on consecutive nights, such as the back-to-back set against the Lakers and Clippers. The two games Gasol has missed this season were a product of that proactive approach to rest and not a result of any specific injury he was dealing with at the time.
Gasol was hopeful of getting back on the court as soon as Tuesday night.
“It’s managing the pain, trying to (build) as much tolerance as possible and then go from there,” Gasol said. “It’s going to be a challenge for sure, but hopefully, we can get the pain down to a point where you can play and … move freely. Every hour counts, whether it’s icing it or using the (stimulation) unit or getting the hands-on treatment – whatever you can do to get the pain to go away as much as possible.”
HEALTH REPORT
Gasol is officially listed as questionable, but there also are developments with the Grizzlies’ other big men. Both Deyonta Davis (foot) and Brandan Wright (ankle) are on the trip and are progressing in their respective rehab regimens. Both remain out, but Davis was on the court working out with Gasol the past two days and appears to be on the verge of a return to action. Mike Conley, who had 22 points in 29 minutes in his first game back Saturday from a two-game absence with a toe infection, reported no setbacks entering Tuesday. For the Lakers, Jose Calderon (hamstring) is doubtful.
NUMBERS WATCH
71. That’s the combined point total from Lakers guard Lou Williams (40) and Grizzlies’ sharpshooter Troy Daniels (31) when the teams last met on Dec. 3 in Memphis. It was essentially a shootout between the two in the second half, but the Grizzlies held on for a 103-100 victory at FedExForum to spoil the homecoming of sorts for Williams, a south Memphis native. His 40 points remain an opponent season high against the Grizzlies and the most ever scored on Memphis by a player off the bench. For Daniels, it was a career-high scoring effort that saw him knock down six threes.
KEEP AN EYE ON
JaMychal Green. Quietly, Green is emerging from that shooting slump that plagued the Grizzlies’ starting power forward for much of the latter part of December. Over his last two games, Green has regained his stroke from beyond the arc and has scored in double figures in wins over Oklahoma City and Sacramento. Over the last five contests, Green is averaging 11.8 points while shooting 66.7 percent overall from the field and 69.2 percent (9-for-13) from three-point range. The Grizzlies will certainly need Green’s scoring punch as they finish out the trip against the Lakers, Clippers and Warriors, particularly if Gasol is limited by the ankle injury. In recent weeks, Green has played well at both power forward alongside Gasol and at center when he’s the second unit’s rim protector paired with Zach Randolph.
GRIZZ-TAKE
Daniels, on carrying his hot three-point shooting into the New Year – If I don’t take those shots, I’m hurting my team. I’m a shooter, so that’s what I do. That’s why the Grizzlies got me. So I have to take every shot that I can when I’m open or when I’m in rhythm. That’s what shooters do.
The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Memphis Grizzlies. All opinions expressed by Michael Wallace are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Memphis Grizzlies or its Basketball Operations staff, owners, parent companies, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known to the Memphis Grizzlies and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the media.