Lakers Rumors: Jaxson Hayes Out 2-3 Weeks After Suffering New Ankle Injury

Los Angeles Lakers center Jaxson Hayes is reportedly expected to miss some time due to an ankle injury.

According to ESPN's Shams Charania, Hayes re-sprained his ankle and is set to be on the shelf for the next two to three weeks.

Hayes missed six consecutive games with a sprained ankle earlier this month, but after returning to play against the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday, he has missed the team's past two games against the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder.

The 24-year-old Hayes was originally the No. 8 overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, and he spent his first four seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans before signing as a free agent with the Lakers.

After averaging 7.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game in 241 contests with the Pels, the 7-footer appeared in 70 games as a reserve center for the Lakers last season, averaging 4.3 points and 3.0 rebounds.

Hayes has played in 11 games so far this season and is putting up 6.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest while shooting a career-best 72.2 percent from the field.

While Anthony Davis and Rui Hachimura are the Lakers' starters, Hayes has been L.A.'s primary big off the bench. That is due in large part to the fact that Jarred Vanderbilt has yet to play this season after undergoing offseason foot surgery.

The Lakers acquired Vanderbilt from the Utah Jazz during the 2022-23 season, and he has been a key contributor ever since when healthy.

Injuries limited Vanderbilt to just 29 games last season, which is a big reason why Hayes took on a significant role.

With both Hayes and Vanderbilt now on the shelf, all signs point toward Christian Koloko receiving a huge uptick in playing time.

Koloko, 24, was the No. 33 overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft by the Toronto Raptors, and he showed some flashes of brilliance defensively as a rookie, averaging 1.0 block per game.

However, Koloko did not play at all last season due to blood clot issues, and he was ultimately waived by the Raptors.

The Lakers signed Koloko in September, and while he has played sparingly, he is averaging 2.2 points and 1.8 rebounds per game in 10 appearances.

Los Angeles is 11-8 on the season, but it has dropped four of its past five games, and depth is starting to become an issue.

Davis and Hachimura will have to carry even more of the frontcourt burden while Hayes and Vanderbilt are out, plus LeBron James could potentially see more action at power forward to make up for the team's lack of healthy bigs.