ONTARIO, Calif. — Luol Deng told Luke Watlon on Saturday that his bruised left knee, injured in a practice collision with Anthony Brown, is feeling “much better,” but the Lakers’ starting small forward will not play in Sunday’s exhibition against Denver.
Instead, Walton will slide in Nick Young, whom he was pleased with after scoring six points in 10 minutes of Friday’s preseason game against the Nuggets.
Metta World Peace started at small forward in that contest, going scoreless in six minutes, while Brandon Ingram — who shot 2-of-8 for six points on Friday — will continue to play with the thus-far successful second unit.
The rest of the starting lineup — D’Angelo Russell, Lou Williams, Julius Randle and Timofey Mozgov — will remain the same for Sunday’s game in Ontario, Calif., and Walton does not have a specific target date for Deng’s return.