Lakers star Anthony Davis had to check out of tonight’s game in the fourth quarter after suffering an apparent back injury. After a brief time away from the action, Davis confirmed after the game that he was good to go for the crucial play-in game.
“I got shoved in the back and it just kind of locked up,” said Davis via Dave McMenamin. “Nothing concerning but I was in the air so it’s just a dangerous play. It’s nothing serious. There’s no doubt that I’ll play but we’ll just see how it feels the rest of the day.”
While Lakers fans were thrilled to get the win, they were crushed to see Davis go down late in the game and some thought it could be a season-ender. After such a surprisingly healthy season from him, this would have been the worst time to suffer a setback. Fortunately, the Lakers have diagnosed the issue as back spasms and there should be no lasting pain for Davis.
“The initial belief is Anthony Davis experienced hip and back spasms after being pushed in the air by Larry Nance Jr. and landing awkwardly, a source familiar with the situation told ESPN,” reported Dave McMenamin.
Injuries are just a fact of life in the NBA and the Lakers know good and well how damaging they can be. For most of their time together, LeBron and Davis have had to deal with injuries non-stop — whether it’s for themselves or their Lakers teammates. Thankfully, it seems the injury bug has avoided them for now and they can roll into the postseason at full strength.
Anthony Davis Is The X-Factor For The Lakers
While LeBron James may be the veteran and leader of the Lakers, it’s Anthony Davis who is most essential to their success. As a premier, two-sided NBA big man, Davis is one of the best in the business and he’s been on a particularly impressive tear this season.
Through 75 games, he’s averaging 24.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game on 55% shooting. His best category has been on defense, where he makes his impact felt with an average of 2.4 blocks per game.
When healthy, Davis is easily a top-10 player in the game and arguably one of the best bigs in the league. If he’s compromised in any way, it could jeopardize the entire mission and eliminate all hope of a run.
From the jump, the Lakers will have their hands full dealing with Zion and the Pelicans and it will take a complete and total effort to stay alive. Beyond the play-in, they’ll have to face either the Denver Nuggets or Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round.
Fortunately, Davis narrowly avoided injury and it seems his availability will not be affected by the play-in. Only with the stars at full strength can this team make noise and as long as the Lakers have LeBron and Davis healthy, they can never be counted out for the Larry O’Brien.
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