Los Angeles Lakers point guard Dennis Schroder will be out 10 to 14 days under the league’s health and safety protocol, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. It’s not clear if Schroder has tested positive for COVID-19 or merely been contact traced to someone who has, but we may have seen the last of the German point guard for the rest of the regular season.
Schroder already missed Sunday night’s loss to the Toronto Raptors under the guidelines. Alex Caruso started for his place in his first game back after missing some time with back spasms.
Schroder has previously missed some time under the league’s Coronavirus policy.
The Lakers have eight games remaining in the next 13 days, giving Schroder very little time to ramp up with the rest of the team as they prepare for the playoffs or the play-in tournament. The absence comes at a time when the Lakers are struggling mightily, losing six of their last seven games despite Anthony Davis and LeBron James returning to the lineup.
This likely means that the Lakers’ trio of James, Davis, and Schroder – likely their three best players – will finish the regular season playing just 24 total games together. The Lakers hold a 17-7 record in those games, including Friday night’s loss to the Sacramento Kings. But with new faces on the roster in Andre Drummond and Ben McLemore as well as James and Davis still working their way back into form after extended absences due to injury, the Lakers will go into the playoffs without any hope of true continuity between their core.
