It's still unclear exactly when Rui Hachimura will return for the Lakers after missing six games because of right calf soreness, but coach JJ Redick said the forward is trending toward playing soon. That could be as early as Monday night when the Lakers play at the Sacramento Kings or Tuesday night when they play the Atlanta Hawks at Crypto.com Arena.
So, with all his travel and everything, it's not going to be like the minutes he was playing consistently, and it's just a matter of what he's gone through. But don't expect it to be more than one game. Once he plays tonight, he will play and then see how he feels.
"He put in a lot of work and we've seen enough and felt [comfortable] enough to give it a go," Johnson said. "We'll be extremely mindful of this situation as we have been and will continue to be. It's just going to be one of those living-breathing kind of situations that we're going to continue to balance until we don't. And I would guess that won't be [just] this season."
