Quentin Grimes. Image via: Luke Hales/ Getty Images
Quentin Grimes left the Los Angeles Lakers’ 121-116 win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday with an injured finger, and the first word is encouraging. The 6-foot-4 guard had started in place of Luka Doncic, who sat out with lower-back tightness.
Los Angeles has not said whether Grimes will play Monday against the Atlanta Hawks, though coach JJ Redick gave a short, hopeful update. Grimes “banged his finger,” the coach said. The X-rays were taken at Little Caesars Arena, and the Lakers have not said which finger is hurt.
X-rays on his right hand came back negative. Late in the fourth quarter, Grimes headed to the locker room with a member of the medical staff and did not return. Redick addressed the injury in his postgame press conference and kept the details thin. He followed with the result: “X-ray is negative, nothing beyond that. A negative result means no fracture. With Doncic already out, a broken finger would have thinned the guard rotation even more. It still does not clear a player to return.