EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Lakers center Andrew Bynum made waves as a dominant young center early in the season, but don’t expect to see him in this series against the Nuggets.
Bynum is still not ready as he rehabs from a dislocated left kneecap, which he suffered Jan. 13 during a game against Memphis. He was originally scheduled to return late in the regular season, but that outlook was revised to a probable return for the first round of the playoffs. But now nothing is expected except Bynum will not play against the Nuggets.
“In this series? I’d be surprised if he did,” Lakers guard Kobe Bryant said when asked if he expected to see Bynum play. “The important thing for him is just to get as healthy as he can. He’s so young and has a bright future ahead. You don’t want him to rush back and reinjure himself.”
Told of Kobe’s words, Lakers coach Phil Jackson said, “Yeah, I think that’s fair to say.”
Bynum gave the Lakers punch and toughness in the paint, something they had largely lacked since Shaquille O’Neal left the team in 2004. In 35 games, Bynum averaged 13.1 points and 10.2 rebounds, raising his level from a 2006-07 season in which he averaged 7.8 points and 5.9 rebounds.
Bynum played twice in the season series against the Nuggets, averaging 7.0 points with 7.5 rebounds and 2.0 blocked shots.
The Lakers have managed well without him, and the biggest reasons are the midseason acquisition of Pau Gasol, the 7-footer from Memphis, and the improvement of forward Lamar Odom.
The Lakers are 22-5 since getting Gasol on Feb. 1. Gasol has averaged 18.8 points and 7.8 rebounds with the Lakers. He has not played against the Nuggets since becoming a Laker.
Odom has been key, intensifying his focus since Bynum went down. With Bynum, Odom averaged 13.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists while shooting 48 percent from the field. After Bynum’s injury, those numbers rose to 14.7 points, 11.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists, while shooting 55 percent from the field.
Still, Odom would like to see Bynum back on the court.
“We want him to come back 100 percent, so he can last throughout the run, however long the run is,” Odom said. “Andrew has years and years in front of him. We want him to get back to 100 percent. We think we can win every game we play, no matter who is on the court, but we would love to have him back as soon as possible.”
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
