EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Los Angeles Lakers coach Mike Brown thinks it's possible Steve Nash will only be out a week because of the fracture to his left leg but said the team isn't putting pressure on him to rush back.
"You obviously hope he's back as soon as possible," Brown said Sunday after the team's shootaround. "But the one thing you don't want to do, you don't want to compromise his long-term health for him coming back quicker than he should. So, (trainer) Gary Vitti and the staff are on top of it. We'll just wait and play it out from there."
Nash suffered a small fracture to his fibula in a collision with Portland rookie Damian Lillard on Wednesday night.
He missed the Lakers' 105-95 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night, when the Lakers dropped to 0-3 for the first time in 34 years.
"We got capable guys that can step up and fill his spot and that's what we're going to have to get," Brown said. "Obviously Darius (Morris) is going to get some minutes so it's going to help his growth and (Steve) Blake is going to get a chance to play with the starting group, so we'll be able to see what he's going to be able to bring to the table and we'll just go from there."
The Lakers host the 0-2 Detroit Pistons on Sunday night.
Nash, 38, said he was "hopeful" to play in the Clippers game, and Brown had said the point guard had "made progress" in the days following his injury. That was before the team knew about the non-displaced fracture at the head of Nash's fibula, an injury fully revealed Saturday in an MRI.
The two-time NBA MVP joined the Lakers last June for his 17th NBA season, agreeing to a three-year, $27 million contract in a sign-and-trade with Phoenix.
