The Los Angeles Lakers will look to knock the Portland Trail Blazers out of the NBA Playoffs this evening in Game 5 of their first-round series.
Head coach Frank Vogel revealed that the Purple and Gold’s bench may be a little depleted tonight.
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Waiters, at times, has given the Lakers an offensive lift off the bench since the team picked him up in early March. However, he has played very little in the series against Portland.
Rondo broke his thumb over a month ago, and he was cleared to play just prior to Game 1 of the series. However, he hasn’t actually seen any game time due to back spasms.
The Blazers, on the other hand, will be more than a little short-handed, as superstar Damian Lillard is out due to a right knee injury he sustained in Game 4.
In fact, the Oakland, Calif. native has left the NBA’s bubble site in order to have his knee examined.
The Lakers are looking to advance past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2012, when they got by the Denver Nuggets in seven games.
