Lakers' Kyle Kuzma To Miss Season Opener

Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma has been ruled out of the season against the Los Angeles Clippers, head coach Frank Vogel said on Sunday.

Right now, it is unknown how much of the start to the regular season Kuzma will miss. He was cleared for non-contact practice last week after suffering a stress reaction in his left foot during USA Basketball training camp in August.

Vogel said at the practice, "Right now, we're just talking about ramping up his activity, and we're not going to look past two days from now...We're going to try to increase his workload and activities this week, and we'll see where we're at." One prime example of that increased workload is that Kuzma stayed late for extra work with an assistant coach.

Kuzma told ESPN he was a "little more optimistic" about his injury after being able to get back on the court this past week. He said, "I haven't really been doing too much, really, for the last two months, so just being able to shoot jump shots and being around the team a little bit more, it's optimistic, for sure."

Kuzma has been in the pool doing workouts to running on an altered-gravity treadmill for the last few weeks, and it looks like he'll get more time on the court for the next week or so. I can't expect him to play anytime this coming week.

Kuzma averaged 18.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.5 assists last season, his second year in the NBA. He is most likely going to be the third-best player now, with both Anthony Davis and LeBron James in the lineup.