Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham told reporters Wednesday that role player Rui Hachimura is "pretty much day to day" after an MRI diagnosed him with a Grade 1 strain in his left calf.
Hachimura suffered the injury on Dec. 31 and was previously ruled out for Wednesday's matchup with the Miami Heat.
The Lakers will be shorthanded against the Heat, with D'Angelo Russell also missing the game with a bruised tailbone that Ham described as "soreness that he's trying to work through."
It's Russell's second straight contest missed with the injury.
Gabe Vincent is also expected to miss up to two months after having arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in late December. He's only made five appearances for the Lakers this season due to those knee issues after signing a three-year, $33 million contract with the team in the offseason.
Cam Reddish is healthy and back for the team, however, with Ham confirming he would return to the starting lineup alongside LeBron James, Jarred Vanderbilt, Taurean Prince and Anthony Davis.
Mike Trudell @LakersReporterCam Reddish is back after missing two of the last three games with adductor soreness, and Darvin Ham said he will start. <br><br>No Rui or Russell off the bench, likely meaning reserve minutes for Max Christie and both Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes.
The Lakers recently transitioned to a bigger lineup, with James serving as the point guard and players like Russell and Austin Reaves coming off the bench. The change was an attempt to reverse a prolonged period of poor play from the Lakers, losers of seven of their last nine games. Since making the move on Dec. 23, the team is 2-3.
Hachimura, 25, has largely come off the bench for the Lakers this season, averaging 11.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 23.5 minutes per game, shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from three.
He was one of several role players the team retained this offseason, signing a three-year, $51 million deal. He joined Russell (two-year, $36 million deal with a player option for the second season) and Reaves (four-year, $53.8 million deal with a player option on the fourth season) as key returnees.
It appeared the Lakers had built a solid, complementary core around James and AD, though outside of winning the In-Season Tournament, the results have been middling to this point. A spate of injuries, including this latest one for Hachimura, hasn't helped.
