In the fourth quarter of the Thursday night game against the Portland Trail Blazers, Larry Nance, Jr. was taken out of the game due to injury. As it turns out, Nance fractured the second metacarpal in his left hand.
Lakers clarify Nance injury. Not a broken thumb. Broken second metacarpal — essentially a broken hand.
— Bill Oram (@billoram) November 3, 2017
In simpler terms, he broke his off-hand, but that’s not always some easy fix. Some players have missed extensive time because of metacarpal fractures.
From previous instances, it seems like the consensus is that metacarpal fractures can take 4-6 weeks to be game ready. This is terrible news for Nance who took the starting power forward spot in his third season and was playing well.
The Lakers will surely miss Nance. His defense has been phenomenal and he’s done everything he can to keep his starting spot and he may have just lost it due to injury. The Lakers will have a hard time replacing his play and short term this most likely means either Kyle Kuzma or Julius Randle starts in Nance’s absence and more playing time for both overall.
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