Grizzlies Rookie Karim Lopez Cleared to Return Monday After Knee Scare
Underdog NBA tweeted: 'Karim Lopez (knee) available Monday.'
The are getting some reinforcement on the wing, as Underdog NBA reports that is officially available for Monday's game after dealing with a knee injury.
Getting slapped with the vague "knee" designation on an NBA injury report is a rite of passage. It could mean anything from a career-altering structural issue to a guy bumping his leg on a coffee table while playing Call of Duty. Luckily for Memphis, this one seems to be the latter.
The 19-year-old rookie is currently getting a crash course in the reality of the professional basketball grind. Going from a standard teenage basketball calendar to the relentless 82-game NBA schedule is a massive physical shock to the system, so seeing a minor joint flare-up this early in his career is just part of the development tax.
Lopez, rocking the number 35 for the , now steps back into a rotation that is trying to figure out its long-term depth. He is still adjusting to the speed of the league, but his availability gives the coaching staff another athletic body to throw at the wall to see what sticks.
For the sickos firing up daily fantasy lineups or looking at Memphis rotation props, his return is a classic wild card. You are probably not banking on a teenager to carry your ticket, but his presence absolutely eats into the minute share of the guys at the end of the bench, making the ' rotation just a little bit harder to predict.
Watch how the manage his workload on Monday night. If he looks spry and the knee holds up, he might start carving out a more consistent role as the season drags on. If he looks a step slow, expect Memphis to wrap their teenage investment in bubble wrap until the weekend.