West Notes: Spurs, Devin Vassell, Lakers, Pelicans

Spurs

Guard Devin Vassell will have his injured left knee scoped, the team announced in a press release.

Vassell missed Wednesday’s road loss to the Knicks with what the Spurs described as general knee soreness, and now they are making sure it’s not more serious. He has missed three of the past four games, with coach Gregg Popovich saying that Vassell was day-to-day.

The procedure isn’t scheduled to take place until Jan. 11, meaning he stands to miss at least another week, likely several.

Vassell, 22, is averaging a career-high 19.4 points on 45 percent shooting, as well as 4.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists, in 29 games.

• In case you missed it, the Spurs pulled off a small trade, landing center/forward Noah Vonleh from the Celtics in exchange for cash. They are waiving Vonleh. We have all the details right here.

Lakers

The Lakers appear unwilling to trade their next two available first-round picks, as we relayed here, and Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated has the reasons why.

“I’ve heard rumblings, and these are only rumblings, I don’t want people to go too far with this or go crazy with the aggregation,” Beck said, via the Crossover podcast. “But a couple people around the league have told me in recent weeks that they believe that the front office has essentially been told not to trade the picks. That they’re guarding those.

“If that’s the case, that speaks to a couple things. One, you’re feeling pretty insecure about your future, post-LeBron James. You think those picks are going to be so valuable in 2027 and 2029 that giving them up would be catastrophic for you. You’re also showing a lack of faith in your ability to trade those picks and find another way to rebuild in whatever the post-LeBron years are.

“You’re also indicating — again, if it’s true that they are just completely unwilling to put those picks on the table, then that means you’re also, by definition, willing to flush this season, because those are your best tools… for improving in the immediate term.”

• James missed Wednesday’s win over the Heat, though coach Darvin Ham said he doesn’t expect the star forward to be out long. James was merely dealing with a “common cold,” Ham told reporters.
• Guard Dennis Schroder ended up being the hero that night, scoring 32 points despite suffering what looked to be a nasty turned ankle in the fourth quarter. “I just try to be there for my teammates,” Schroder said. “I felt pretty good after (turning the ankle). Of course, it was sore, and it hurt. But I know my limits.”

Pelicans

• The Pelicans are likely to be cautious with power forward Zion Williamson‘s hamstring injury, per Will Guillory of The Athletic. Williamson is officially out at least three weeks, though it very well could be longer, per Guillory.
• Meanwhile, forward Brandon Ingram (toe) has been ramping up his practice activity and could return soon, Guillory wrote. Ingram has been sidelined since Nov. 25.