As the Lakers edged closer to a 133-121 victory over the Pelicans, with just 7:25 left in the fourth, Deandre Ayton signaled for a timeout, clutching his right knee, the same old nagging issue, before heading to the bench.

Before Friday night’s clash with the Dallas Mavericks, the Lakers were keeping a close eye on Deandre Ayton. The big man had been dealing with a knee issue, but fans got some relief when he was upgraded from probable to available early that day.

Speaking with ESPN’s Dave McMenamin during shootaround, Ayton opened up about the injury. “It was kinda scary the way it felt,” he admitted. “It felt like my knee broke, it really was like a bone-to-bone contusion where he just hit my kneecap dead on with my patella, and it was just like a bruising, really, stuff I could play through.”

Despite the pain, Ayton made it clear it wouldn’t keep him off the court. “It’s not really something that’s stopping me from playing, it hurts, but it’s something I can play through.”

But he still hit the court against the Pelicans, though it looks like the injury may have flared up again.

(This is a developing story…)