Ankle

When: 7:30. Where: Staples Center. On the air: TV: Prime; Radio: 710, 1330. Records: Lakers 35-20, Rockets 29-25. Record vs. Rockets: 1-1. Update: Metta World Peace disclosed after the Lakers' 113-108 victory over the Clippers on Wednesday that he has been playing through an ankle injury he sustained March 29 against Oklahoma City. He was moving fine against the Clippers, knocking the ball away from Chris Paul for a key steal in the final minutes.

It has been almost a year since Kendrys Morales broke his left ankle while jumping onto home plate in celebration of a walk-off home run. But it wasn't until this week that the Angels used the term "fracture/dislocation" to describe the first baseman's injury. That term provides insight as to why Morales was slow to recover from surgery last June and why he elected to have a second surgery that will sideline him for the 2011 season. "From a layman's perspective, it didn't seem right — a simple ankle fracture, you fix it and you're back in three months," said Dr. Tim Gibson, an orthopedic surgeon at Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in Fountain Valley.

Reporting from Oakland Brian Cook said Friday that his injured ankle continues to improve and he's hoping to return by the end of the month. The veteran reserve forward, signed by the Clippers in the off-season, sprained his right ankle Dec. 17 against the Detroit Pistons. Cook has picked up the pace in recent practices and said he's "making progress every day. " "It's going really good," said Cook, 30, who was averaging 6.1 points and 3.1 rebounds before he was hurt.

When: 7:30. Where: Rose Garden. On the air: TV: TNT; Radio: 980, 1330. Records: Clippers 18-9, Portland 16-14. Update: This will be the final game of a back-to-back-to-back set for Portland, which had lost four of five before its game Wednesday at Golden State. Trail Blazers All-Star forward LaMarcus Aldridge suffered a sprained left ankle early in his team's loss to Washington on Tuesday. The team said X-rays on the ankle were negative, but Aldridge did not play against Golden State.

The Clippers had hoped Chris Kaman's injured left ankle would heal in time for the All-Star center to rejoin the team's lineup next week when they leave for a three-game trip. But it's not to be. Kaman, 28, will miss at least three more weeks because of the ankle has a bone bruise and ligament sprain, the Clippers said Friday. "I'm frustrated and disappointed that I have to wait longer," Kaman said. "I was hoping to play sooner, but injuries are a part of basketball.

Clippers center Chris Kaman said Tuesday his injured left ankle is gradually improving, but he still doesn't know when he'll be back in the lineup. "[It's] getting there," he said after the team practiced at its Playa Vista training facility ahead of its game Wednesday against the Chicago Bulls at Staples Center. "It's not like there's a time frame. I wish there was. I don't know when I'm going to be playing again. " Kaman, 28, first injured the ankle Nov. 9 against the Hornets in New Orleans.

The Dodgers will be without pitcher Kevin Brown and outfielder Gary Sheffield indefinitely after the two key players were among four injured Saturday in the club's improbable 6-5, 10-inning victory over the New York Mets at Shea Stadium. Brown suffered a fractured pinkie finger on his throwing hand after being hit by a pitch by New York starter Pat Mahomes while trying to bunt in the fifth. The break begins at Brown's knuckle and extends into the digit's shaft, team trainer Stan Johnston said.

Stais Boseman says his ankle is completely healed now. And how. Thursday night at Inglewood's Coleman Field, Boseman passed for five touchdowns and ran for 139 yards to lead Morningside High to a 35-27 Ocean League victory over visiting Redondo. The senior quarterback, who sprained an ankle in the season opener, led the Monarchs (4-3, 3-0 in league play) to their third consecutive victory by passing for touchdowns of 11, 71, 33, 39 and four yards. He set up one touchdown with a 69-yard scramble.

Brett Favre missed his second straight day of practice for the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday, but he walked around the team's facility without the oversized boot that had been protecting an injury that is putting his league-record streak of 291 consecutive starts streak in jeopardy. The 41-year-old quarterback limped through the locker room with a heavy wrap on his ankle, which was injured in a loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night. Asked if he thought he could play against New England, Favre said, "I wouldn't put anything past me, to be honest with you. " Favre has a stress fracture in the ankle as well as an avulsion fracture in the heel bone, where a fragment has been torn away by a tendon or ligament.

Brett Favre's left ankle is still hurting from a hit he absorbed in the NFC championship game three months ago, and the injury weighs into the quarterback's pending decision on whether he will return to the Minnesota Vikings next season. In a statement issued Friday on his website, Favre said his ankle will require surgery if he decides to come back for a 20th season, although he added that the injury "is not debilitating" and he has been through worse over the course of his career.