The Kings will be without a key piece during a pivotal stretch of the 2023-24 NBA season.
Trey Lyles sustained an MCL sprain in Tuesday's win over the Milwaukee Bucks at Golden 1 Center, an MRI confirmed Friday. He will be listed as out for Sacramento and re-evaluated in two weeks.
Lyles injured his left knee in the second quarter of Tuesday's game while going up for a rebound and then awkwardly landing on his leg.
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The 28-year-old forward tried to push through a couple of plays later but was visibly in pain as he limped up and down the court before being pulled out of the game and taken back to the Kings' locker room for further evaluation.
Ultimately, Lyles was ruled out of the remainder of the contest and missed the second half of Sacramento's back-to-back, a win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday at Golden 1 Center.
Lyles' injury is a huge loss for the Kings, who already have had to maneuver through several injuries to key players this season.
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After missing the first 13 games of the season due to a calf injury, Lyles returned to the court and is averaging 7.1 points on 45-percent shooting from the field and 38.3 percent from 3-point range in 49 games this season, with 4.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 19.8 minutes.
His versatility as the four or the five has allowed Kings coach Mike Brown to experiment with different lineups based on matchups, and the physicality he brings to the floor is something the Kings coach practically has begged the rest of the team for all season.
Now, without Lyles for at least two weeks and Kings forward Sasha Vezenkov, who has missed the last 14 contests with a grade 3 right ankle sprain that he sustained last month, the Kings' depth will be challenged in new ways down the final stretch of the regular season.