An MRI revealed that Andrew Bynum's elbow injury was only a strain, news that no doubt comes as a gigantic relief to the Los Angeles Lakers, who have seen Bynum miss significant chunks of the last two seasons. The L.A. Times reports:

Lakers center Andrew Bynum is doubtful for Friday's game against Memphis after an MRI exam today showed a strained right elbow. Bynum was injured when he was fouled across the arm by center Chuck Hayes in overtime of the Lakers' 103-102 victory Wednesday against Houston.

Bynum said he was relieved that the injury wasn't "too serious." He had better range of motion this afternoon after being unable to use his right arm while getting dressed after Wednesday night's game.

He said he wasn't sure if he would play Sunday against New Orleans.

If Bynum and Gasol cannot play Friday, DJ Mbenga would probably get the start at center against rugged Grizzlies center Marc Gasol. Going with a small lineup, and Lamar Odom at center, is also a possibility.

Meanwhile, Yahoo! Sports' Kelly Dwyer weighs in with an apt observation:

Despite the Lakers' close, overtime victory last night in what our Sean Keeley hilariously dubbed "Ariza Bowl I," the victory did not come without casualties. And you know, I knew something was missing from this NBA season. I just knew it.

The Clippers are terrible, Vince Carter's already got a gimpy ankle, Steve Nash is still the weirdly hot older chick, dominating younger blondes like Dwyane Wade... But something just didn't feel right. From the L.A. Times:

Andrew Bynum was injured toward the end of the Lakers' 103-102 overtime victory Wednesday over the Houston Rockets.

Bynum was fouled hard across his right arm while going up for a shot and sustained a sprained elbow with 24.7 seconds left in overtime. He will be re-evaluated today in Los Angeles.

"I can't even lift my arm right now," Bynum said. "They just took a shot at me. That's that, I guess. It's not that bad. It just takes a little while to heal up."

Ah, yes. Our annual "Andrew Bynum is injured...But this was supposed to be his breakout year!" story. For now, they're calling it a sprained elbow and Bynum is day-to-day, but given the history, here, you never know how this might turn out. The injury comes on the heels of--sarcasm aside--another stellar outing from Bynum (17 points, 17 rebounds), the promising Lakers big man that's been too banged up to fully blossom so far in his career. More from the Times:

Bynum definitely looked hurt after getting fouled by Chuck Hayes while going up for a layup attempt with 24.7 seconds left in overtime. He immediately frowned and grabbed his arm but stayed on the court to shoot two free throws, making one before leaving the game.

Afterward, he could use only his left arm to pull a shirt and sweater over his head as he dressed in the locker room.

We'll have more on this as it develops. In the interim, though, with Pau Gasol injured too, let's all make room for Lamar Odom, your 2009 Lakers' starting center! (Either that, or they'll go with DJ Mbenga, which is equally hilarious, because it's fun to stand and scream "MBENGA!")