Report: Lakers fear ankle injury could hold Kyle Kuzma back at the start of training camp

Kyle Kuzma Lakers.
Kyle Kuzma may not be ready for the start of training camp. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

The Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma believes he could join LeBron James and Anthony Davis as the Lakers’ third superstar. In order to do that, however, the 24-year-old Kuzma needs to get healthy.

Kuzma is still dealing with an offseason ankle injury, and the Lakers fear the issue could keep Kuzma on the sideline for the start of training camp, according to Marc Stein of The New York Times.

The Lakers will hold their first training camp practice Saturday.

Kuzma suffered the injury while training with Team USA in August. After sitting out against Australia, Kuzma decided to withdraw from the team to focus on the Lakers’ season.

It’s a crucial year for Kuzma and the Lakers. After averaging 18.7 points and 2.5 assists in his second year. Kuzma is looking to take his game to a much higher level in Year 3. With Anthony and James in tow, the Lakers would greatly benefit from a Kuzma breakout.

While Kuzma may miss the start of training camp, the injury doesn’t appear serious. The Lakers won’t play their first regular-season game until Oct. 22, so Kuzma has plenty of time to recover.

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik

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