After a 2-10 start to the season, the Los Angeles Lakers finally started showing some signs of life, grabbing some key wins to fall within striking distance of the playoff picture.
In light of Anthony Davis’ latest injury, however, a lot of things have changed for the Purple and Gold. For one, it seems the front office has changed its stance on mid-season trades.
As Marc Stein wrote in his Substack, the loss of Davis has made the Lakers de-prioritize striking a deal.
“The trade completion in Lakerland has realistically changed this weekend irrespective of the Pistons’ Bogdanovic plans. Losing Anthony Davis indefinitely to a foot injury, suffered in Friday’s win over Denver, means that the Lakers’ playoff hopes might well be snuffed out already since they are 12-16 in the loaded West even with Davis playing as well as he ever has, averaging 27.4 points, 12.1 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game on while shooting a robust 59.3% from the field. Passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s All-Time leading scorer thus might be the only thing LeBron James, currently 766 points away from the top spot, has left to play for in his 20th season.”
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Can The Lakers Stay Alive Without Anthony Davis?
Davis went down at the worst possible time. Right as he was rounding back into MVP form, and the Lakers were building momentum, he goes down for an indefinite amount of time, which could be the final nail in the coffin for the Lakeshow this season.
Still, there is some sense that they have a chance, and securing the win without Davis in the second half on Friday proved it.
“Hell of a job, guys. Hell of a job. We lose a huge source of income at halftime, everybody chipped in,” said head coach Darvin Ham after the win against Denver. “Everybody chipped in, and that’s what family do. Max, Russ, Bron, Dennis, Pat, everybody. Everybody that had that jersey on. But one guy in particular. One guy who was just in the ‘stay ready’ group and had to go out there and bus this a** against the two-time MVP. And he stepped up because he’s bought in. He embraces the family concept, believes in it, and we’re doing it and it may seem corny, but I don’t really give a damn.”
So, it seems like Rob Pelinka is ready to throw the towel on this season. At the very least, we know he isn’t going to give up one of his first-round picks to make some high-risk desperation move.
But he should do something, and Lakers fans are tired of watching their team sit around and watch as LeBron James carries a load on the court no 37-year-old should have to carry.
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