Lakers Head Coach Frank Vogel Clears Health & Safety Protocols; Will Coach vs. Blazers Friday

The Los Angeles Lakers have been playing without head coach Frank Vogel since December 19, but tonight they will no longer have to do so.

According to the team, Vogel will return to the sidelines tonight against the Portland Trail Blazers.

In Vogel’s absence, David Fizdale became the team’s acting head coach and the Lakers went 1-5 during that stretch. Tonight, they will look to bounce back after losing to the Memphis Grizzlies in crushing fashion Wednesday night.

While Vogel returns to the bench, the Blazers are still without their head coach Chauncey Billups.

Billups entered health & safety protocols Monday and will miss his third consecutive game this evening. There is hope that Billups can return to the team sometime next week. In the meantime, Scott Brooks remains the team’s acting head coach.

The Blazers are still dealing with COVID protocols outside of Billups with seven players unavailable for tonight’s game, including new members Anfernee Simons and Brandon Williams. However, the team is welcoming back Ben McLemore and Dennis Smith Jr. to the court for tonight’s game.