Dennis Schröder misses Lakers vs Nets over health and safety protocols

Dennis Schröder will not be available when the Los Angeles Lakers face the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday due to health and safety protocols, the team announced just an hour before the report. It was so sudden that during Frank Vogel’s pre-game media availability, he said he couldn’t wait to see Schröder and Nets goalie Kyrie Irving go head to head.

Schröder is the second Lakers to miss a game due to health and safety protocols this season. Alex Caruso missed four games due to contact tracing at the start of the season. Lakers head athletic coach Nina Hsieh also missed a game due to league health and safety protocols, however, she was back on the bench the very next game, suggesting that she has not tested positive for the coronavirus.

In other words, a mention of “health and safety protocols” does not automatically mean that a team member has tested positive for the coronavirus – in fact, in the case of the Lakers, it did. never meant that this season. The Lakers haven’t had a positive coronavirus test since March, when players were first tested before the Orlando bubble. They also did not have a game postponed due to health and safety protocols.

Wesley Matthews will start in place of Schröder on Thursday. Schröder has started every game he has been available for this season. In those games, he averages 14.2 points and 4.3 assists per game.

There has been no update on Schröder’s availability going forward, although that is to be expected. We probably won’t know much more about Schröder’s situation until after the game.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast on itunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google podcasts. You can follow this author on Twitter at @RadRivas.