The Los Angeles Lakers have taken a big hit losing Avery Bradley to restart the 2019-2020 NBA and now hope to avoid the same fate with Dwight Howard.
Bradley and Howard were among the most explicit members of the players’ coalition in raising concerns about ending the season in a bubble environment at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, amid efforts to combat racial injustice.
Aside from their obligation to raise awareness about the social distress that exists because of systemic racism, each of them has their own personal reasons for wanting to stay home during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). For Bradley, a medical problem with his 6-year-old son played an important role in his decision to sit down.
Howard has yet to make a decision, but this will have to change with the teams who are now to present their final rounds in the championship.
“Dwight is another player of ours who has a mitigating circumstance in addition to some of the social justice messages he is making, which we are in favor of,” said Rob Pelinka, vice president of basketball operations.
“One of his children, a 6-year-old son, tragically lost his mother several weeks ago. We worked closely together and have often been in contact with Dwight and his agent.
“As you know guys, there was a waiver date that Dwight hadn’t notified he was going to give up, so we’ll continue to work in those mitigating circumstances with Dwight and support him, support his 6-year-old son and hope for the best – he will do part of our list in Orlando. But that will be an ongoing process. “
The Lakers have clearly placed emphasis on supporting Howard’s situation and the challenges that players have risked to health to potentially revive the season for up to three months. While it may leave them with another noticeable void to fill on the roadside roster, Pelinka’s comments indicate that they are still optimistic about her status.
Los Angeles appears to have managed to find a replacement for Bradley in the form of JR Smith, given his skill set as a two-way player. However, making a replacement suitable for Howard’s age this point of the year could prove to be much more difficult considering his contributions from the bench.
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