Lakers forward ‘trending in right direction’ after injury setback

SACRAMENTO — The Lakers took a step toward becoming a fully healthy team on Wednesday before their road game against the Kings at Golden 1 Center. 

The team announced that Adou Thiero was assigned to the franchise’s G League affiliate, the Coachella Valley Lakers.

Adou Thiero’s size and athleticism can be game-changers for the Lakers. Getty Images

The second-year forward presumably practiced with the G League team, with Lakers coach JJ Redick saying earlier in the week that the hope is he’ll be available to make his season debut later this week.

“Practice was fine [on Wednesday], went well,” Redick said. “That was the plan just to get him a live practice today and then he’ll be back with us.”

The Lakers host the Trail Blazers on Friday before kicking off a road trip against the Pistons on Sunday. The matchup in Detroit is the first night of a back-to-back set, with the Lakers playing the Hawks in Atlanta on Monday.

Adou Thiero appears to be close to making his season debut. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

“He’s had some live exposures,” Redick said of Thiero, “and I think he’s trending in the right direction.”

The 6-foot-8 forward had been sidelined since the preseason because of left knee swelling, with the team shutting him down from on-court activities for a couple of days before ramping him back up.

He played in the team’s first three preseason exhibitions.

The swelling was happening in the same knee that he had surgery on during the spring of 2025. He was also sidelined during training camp, preseason and the first 13 games of the regular season while dealing with left knee swelling. 

But it appears that Thiero is inching closer to being available for the first time in 2026-27.

He was the only player listed on the injury report ahead of the Lakers’ matchup against the Kings. 

Adou Thiero has been sidelined because of his left knee multiple times since entering the NBA last year. NBAE via Getty Images