Steve Nash says left ankle has bothered him since before camp

LAS VEGAS -- Steve Nash left the Lakers’ exhibition game against the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night in the first quarter after failing to get his left ankle loose.

He can only hope it’s not a season-long issue.

The veteran point guard disclosed after the Lakers’ 104-86 defeat at MGM Grand Garden Arena that his ankle has bothered him since about a week before the start of training camp.

“Tonight was just one of those nights that for whatever reason it just wasn’t moving freely and I couldn’t get it to loosen up and it started to get worse,” said Nash, who went scoreless with two assists in only eight minutes. “I don’t want any setbacks so we called it, and I’ll just try to make sure I can get it right for the subsequent days before our next exhibition game.”

Nash said he hoped to play Tuesday when the Lakers open their two-game trip to China with an exhibition against the Golden State Warriors in Beijing.

Did Nash, who will turn 40 in February, fear he might have to deal with the ankle all season long?

“It has gotten better,” he said. “At the start of camp, it wasn’t very good at all and then through camp it did improve and I think today was more of an unfortunate day than just a real problem. It could linger throughout the season, but I don’t expect that to be the case.

“I’m hoping that through this month I can try to put it behind me. It’s kind of a little bit of a dance because I need this time to prepare. At the same time, obviously you don’t want to pound the ankle to where I’m not able to function.”

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