Avery Bradley opts out of returning to NBA bubble due to son's health issues

Avery Bradley has joined Davis Bertans and Trevor Ariza as players who will not be returning for the completion of the NBA season and playoffs. And while Bradley had talked about not returning due to wanting to focus on the Black Lives Matter movement, the former Celtics guard says it's his family's health that steered him to this decision.

At the forefront of Bradley's decision to remain with his family is the well-being of his oldest child, 6-year-old son Liam. Bradley and his wife, Ashley, have three children.

Liam Bradley has a history of struggling to recover from respiratory illnesses, and it's unlikely that he would have been medically cleared to enter the Orlando bubble with his family.

"As committed to my Lakers teammates and the organization as I am, I ultimately play basketball for my family," Avery Bradley said. "And so, at a time like this, I can't imagine making any decision that might put my family's health and well-being at even the slightest risk.

"As promised also, I will use this time away to focus on the formation of projects to help strengthen my communities."

While Bradley doesn't put up big numbers by any means, his defense will be sorely missed by the Lakers. Woj is reporting that the Lakers are likely to sign former LeBron James Cavs teammate J.R. Smith (no relation). Alex Caruso will undoubtedly get more PT with AB no longer in the roatation.

80% of Alex Caruso’s minutes this season came without Avery Bradley on the floor.

The only player on the team with a better on/off court net rating differential than Caruso is LeBron James.

Alex Caruso just became one of the NBA’s most important players.

— Micah Adams (@MicahAdams13) June 24, 2020

When last we saw J.R. Smith in the NBA Finals he was very productive at dribbling out the clock on tie games.