LA Lakers injury report: Lakers might get a playoff boost as Dennis Schröder announces his return | 2020-21 NBA season
Amid all of the LA Lakers' injury concerns, Dennis Schröder had also been sidelined due to the league's health and safety protocols.
However, there is some good news for Lakers fans as the German star gave a hint to his followers on Instagram as to his impending return. Schröder was expected to be back for the team's matchup with the Indiana Pacers on Saturday and coach Frank Vogel stated on Wednesday that this was still a possibility.
In Schröder's most recent post on the social media site, it appears that he could indeed be ready to take to the court again.
What Dennis Schröder's potential return means for the LA Lakers
Dennis Schröder's absence from the team came at the worst time for the LA Lakers, with LeBron James also taking more time out to recover from his ankle injury. Without their point guard, the Lakers have gone 4-3 with huge performances from Talen Horton-Tucker, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Alex Caruso in the backcourt.
Having Schröder back, alongside Anthony Davis and potentially LeBron James too, will give the LA Lakers some much-needed consistency before the playoffs. At the moment, it looks like they will be facing a play-in tournament matchup. Therefore, if they have their full-strength lineup back together, it makes them favorites to emerge in the 7th seed.
Prior to being out of the team, Schröder had been playing some of his best basketball as an LA Lakers player. In the ten games before he had to go into the league's Covid-19 protocols, he was averaging 17.1 points a night and 8.2 assists, both of which were considerably above his season averages.
The prospect of having Dennis Schröder back will give the LA Lakers a boost heading into their final two games and potential play-in tournament appearance. He has led by example in the league's best defensive unit, averaging 1.2 steals per game and a defensive win share of 2.7, which is the highest of his career.
He is a tenacious competitor, though has also improved his offensive creativity this year. Per 100 possessions, his offensive rating is the second-highest of his eight years in the league. Behind James and Davis, he is the LA Lakers' third-highest scorer and second-most accurate free-throw shooter (84.4%).