The Los Angeles Lakers announced Tuesday that reserve big man Maxi Kleber will miss at least the first two weeks of the 2025-26 NBA regular season.
According to Dan Woike of The Athletic, the team said Kleber’s oblique strain will be re-evaluated in two weeks.
While an exact return date for Kleber is yet to be determined, he will not play in the Lakers’ season-opening game against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.
Kleber, 33, spent parts of his first eight NBA seasons with the Dallas Mavericks before getting traded to the Lakers back in February.
He was part of the blockbuster deal that sent himself, Luka Dončić and Markieff Morris to L.A. in exchange for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick.
Kleber was injured at the time of the trade, and while he did not appear in a regular-season game for the Lakers last season, he did play in one playoff game, recording two points in five minutes of action.
Over his eight NBA seasons, Kleber appeared in 440 regular-season games for the Mavs, averaging 6.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.1 three-pointers made and 0.9 blocks per contest, while shooting 44.3 percent from the field and 35.4 percent from beyond the arc.
His most productive season came in 2019-20 when the 6’10” power forward from Germany averaged a career-high 9.1 points per game to go along with 5.2 rebounds, 1.6 three-pointers made, 1.2 assists and 1.1 blocks.
Kleber was not necessarily expected to be a massive part of the Lakers’ rotation this season, but his absence looms larger due to the fact that L.A. is already without superstar forward LeBron James.
Two weeks ago, the Lakers announced James would miss three to four weeks due to sciatica. With Kleber also on the shelf, the Lakers’ depth will be tested early in the season.
Dončić, Austin Reaves and Deandre Ayton will be tasked with leading the way, while frontcourt players such as Rui Hachimura, Jarred Vanderbilt, Jake LaRavia, Jaxson Hayes and Christian Koloko will also have to step up during the absence of Kleber and LeBron.
