Mike D’Antoni hopeful Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant will return on January 28th

The Lakers are 14-22 on the season, and have lost nine of their last ten games. Things seem dark now, but the cavalry–albeit the old cavalry– could be coming soon. The Lakers will be going on a seven game road trip while the Grammy’s happen in Los Angeles, and when that’s over, they could be getting Steve Nash and Kobe Bryant back. Mike D’Antoni said as much to ESPN Radio 710 in Los Angeles on Friday:

"“Nash and Kobe are going to come back together at the end of the road trip. They’ll get re-evaluated and they could possibly be ready by the end of the road trip.”"

This won’t have much of an impact right away, but seeing a healthy Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, and Pau Gasol together could lead to some beautiful basketball. Obviously, the Lakers will always be better with those guys on the floor, but there will be an adjustment period when they do return.

The best path for the Lakers would be to continue to lose and get a high pick, but I don’t think those two guys are a big fan of losing. We will never know what this team could have been fully healthy, but we could get a glimpse in the final stretch of the season.

Bryant has been out with a fractured leg since December, and Nash has missed the majority of the season with nerve damage that stems from a leg fracture last season.