No timetable given for Brown’s return

The Lakers declined to establish a timetable for how long Kwame Brown would be sidelined because of a severe sprain in his left ankle, saying he would be reevaluated in about two weeks.

A CT scan and an MRI exam were negative for fractures a day after the Lakers center landed awkwardly after blocking the shot of Philadelphia 76ers guard Andre Miller in the Lakers’ 104-94 victory Sunday.

“We don’t want to give a target date simply because everybody’s body heals different, and there’s no way to know at this time how long Kwame will take to heal from the injury,” Lakers spokesman John Black said Monday.

A severely sprained ankle typically takes four to six weeks to heal, which would leave the Lakers perilously thin in the frontcourt in the short term. They are without center Chris Mihm the rest of the season because of ankle surgery and without forward Lamar Odom until at least mid-January because of a sprained knee ligament.

Either Andrew Bynum or Ronny Turiaf will start in Brown’s place Thursday at Sacramento, with forward Brian Cook also likely to log time at center.

The Lakers will see how they fare without Brown in the middle before considering a trade for a big man or possibly choosing from a limited pool of free agents, a team source said.

Bynum started the first 14 games at center and had 18 points and nine rebounds in the season opener Oct. 31 against Phoenix. He began to wilt after getting 12 points and 13 rebounds Nov. 19 against Chicago, collecting only 16 points and 18 rebounds over the next four games.

He was then late to a pre-game warmup and lost his starting job before a Nov. 30 game against Utah.

Bynum said he would accept re-insertion into the starting five.

“I think I can start in the NBA and play big minutes for my team,” Bynum said. “When you start, you’re actually in the game, you get those extra minutes out there.”

Turiaf has been in and out of the rotation, his minutes curbed whenever Bynum plays well and also sometimes because of chronic pain in his hips, a condition he has battled for years.

Coach Phil Jackson said Turiaf’s condition would not affect his playing status: “We hope not to have to play him 40-minute games, but I think we can play him.”

Turiaf was one of the Lakers’ best players in a Dec. 25 loss at Miami, scoring 13 points and taking seven rebounds in only 20 minutes.

“It’s a big void losing Kwame,” Turiaf said. “In my opinion, he’s probably the best center in the league as far as putting guys right in front of him, and making guys score over him because he’s so strong. I think we’re just going to have to step up, me and [Bynum] and Cookie also.”

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Kobe Bryant knows what Brown is going through. He has been there before.

He missed a game four weeks ago because of a sprained ankle and, more notably, missed 14 games two seasons ago because of a severely sprained ankle.

“Ankle injuries are the worst,” Bryant said. “They’re just the worst. They take the longest to heal, and when they heal, it takes a couple weeks just to get your ankle underneath you again to cut like you normally would cut. It’s a tough injury to deal with. You stay the course and just do what you have to do, and do it consistently, you’ll be fine.”

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mike.bresnahan@latimes.com