| Jordan Hill's hip will keep him out for the rest of the season. (Getty Images) |
In case you were wondering if the Los Angeles Lakers were going to get healthier anytime soon, it won't happen with big man Jordan Hill.
The team has announced he has a lot going wrong with his injured hip and will miss the rest of the season. From the Lakers:
Lakers forward Jordan Hill was examined by team doctor Steve Lombardo and hip specialist Dr. Jason Snibbe, and underwent an arthrogram test today on his injured left hip.
Results of the test showed he has loose fragments in addition to a possible labral tear. Hill has been advised that surgery will be needed to repair the injury, and he will be out for the remainder of the season.
Hill is expected to get a second opinion before he schedules surgery.
This is very bad news for the Lakers.
They're already thin inside, and we saw the other night how little production the duo of Antawn Jamison and Robert Sacre can give them. Now their depth will be even thinner as they wait for Pau Gasol and Dwight Howard to be healthy enough to play.
Hill was having the best season of his career. He was averaging 6.7 points and 5.7 rebounds in just 15.8 minutes. He was making 49.7 percent of his shots from the field and 65.6 percent of his shots from the free throw line. He also had career-highs in PER (18.6) and WS/48 (.146).
Now the Lakers might need to look to a free agent or find a big man in the D-League. They can't run the rest of the season with their current backups, unless Earl Clark can step forward and be a consistent option at the 4. Even then, they need someone who can play some significant time at the backup center.
Gasol is still suffering from a concussion and waiting to be cleared to play, and Howard has a torn labrum in his shoulder. Jamison is just fine; however, he's not any good anymore.