Shoulder injury sidelines Lakers C Howard for Friday's game
Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard will sit out Friday night's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with a shoulder injury.
Howard reaggravated a torn labrum in his right shoulder on Wednesday night in the Lakers' loss to Phoenix. He originally suffered the injury in an Jan. 4 game against the Los Angeles Clippers and missed three games before returning.
The Lakers announced Friday that Howard will go to Los Angeles to visit Dr. Steven Yoon and undergo a test on Saturday before rejoining the team in Detroit.Howard also will undergo platelet-rich plasma therapy.
His status for Sunday's game against the Pistons and the remainder of the road trip is day to day.
Howard said Wednesday night that he hoped to avoid missing more games. He wants to put off surgery until after the season because the recovery would take six months.
"It is going to be an all-season thing. That's how those types of injuries are with the labrum. I've had them before," teammate Kobe Bryant said, according to ESPN.com.
