Ziaire Williams Not Sure What Caused Foot Soreness, Hopeful Injury Is Behind Him

After a three-game hiatus because of foot soreness, Ziaire Williams returned to the Los Angeles Lakers’ rotation in Monday night’s 138-117 win over the Miami Heat. Although he didn’t rejoin the starting lineup, he played 15 minutes and continued his highly efficient scoring season with nine points on 3-of-6 shooting from deep while adding two rebounds, two assists and a steal.

“I don’t [have an idea what caused soreness]. Kind of just flared up out of nowhere,” Williams told reporters following Monday’s victory. “But we got some of the best doctors in the world and I’m in good hands. I’m here to stay [in the rotation], hopefully, as long as I can and I feel great right now. I’ll be back out there on Wednesday.”

Williams’ pestering point-of-attack defense and reliable play-finishing alongside Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves have been rather valuable for the Lakers during his five appearances this season. Throughout his career, however, he has struggled with injuries and never eclipsed more than 63 games in a season, averaging 53.8 games played across his first five years.

Los Angeles will hope he’s fully past this brief injury spell and can continue providing worthwhile contributions on both ends. At the very least, he seems to have full confidence in the Lakers’ training staff. That’s always encouraging.

Although the sample is small, the Lakers have fared very well with their preferred starting five of Dončić, Reaves, Williams, Matisse Thybulle and Walker Kessler on the floor; in 51 minutes, they’ve outscored opponents by 23 points. While Williams was sidelined, Jake LaRavia assumed his starting spot and that quintet has also been dynamite in its limited run, outscoring teams by 42 points in 37 minutes.

Entering the year, Los Angeles’ biggest question mark within its starting group was on the wings. Through two weeks, the likes of Williams, Thybulle and LaRavia have all answered the call. With Williams now back and LaRavia also playing pretty well, it’ll be interesting to see how head coach JJ Redick handles their minutes and the lineup configurations. We’ll get another look when the Sacramento Kings host the Lakers Wednesday night at 7 p.m.

You can follow Jackson on Twitter at @jackfrank_jjf.