Andrew Bynum Has Knee Drained

In an effort to gain more fluidity in the NBA Finals, Bynum underwent a similar procedure to what teammate Kobe Bryant went through earlier in the Playoffs. From the LA Times: “Lakers center Andrew Bynum, who was inhibited during the Western Conference playoffs because of swelling in his right knee, finally decided to have the knee drained Monday at the team’s training facility in El Segundo. Bynum had 2 1/2 ounces of fluid removed, a substantial amount. He had been slowed by torn cartilage in the knee for a little over a month, an injury that limited his minutes and the quality of his play. Bynum had been hesitant to have the procedure, preferring to stick with treatment rather than following the suggestions made by Lakers trainers and medical staff. But with the Lakers about to play the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday at Staples Center, Bynum felt the time was right, knowing the Lakers will need his 7-foot, 285-pound presence at center to contend with Boston’s physical front line. ‘I didn’t want to. I’m the one who had been fighting it the whole time,’ Bynum said. ‘But it just got to a point where the swelling was just staying there. It was kind of like that green ball over there, just big and a massive amount of swelling, so we just had to take it out.’ Bynum laughed and pointed to a green medicine ball sitting in a rack at the training facility.”