The Los Angeles Lakers fell to a 104-118 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in a surprising loss as Philly were without both Joel Embiid and Paul George. Unfortunately, the Lakers spent most of the game without Anthony Davis as he left the game with an abdominal strain after playing just 10 minutes.
LeBron James discussed Davis’ injury, hoping the center returns soon but admitted it’s going to be challenging to be without him in his post–game media interview.
“When our best player goes out, it’s always challenging. Especially in the game. If he’s out from the beginning, we have a game plan set and we know what to expect. We know what our lineup is going to be. When AD goes down or anyone goes down, it’s tough. I didn’t even realize until the second quarter when he didn’t come back for his regular minutes. I looked over the bench and he wasn’t there, so I found out at halftime. Level of concern? I think we’ll be fine.”
Davis managed to score just four points (2-3 FG) in his 9:50 of action. The Lakers were competitive when Davis was on the court, as the franchise was +3 when he was on the court. The wheels fell off the wagon after Davis left, with the Lakers falling to a 25-point deficit at one point in the game.
James’ point about the Lakers gameplan being thrown off-kilter without Davis does make sense given how their level of play seemingly improved toward the end of the second half as they acclimatized to playing without Davis. By that point, they were down big and had little chance of making a comeback, although they did outscore Philly 28-19 in the fourth.
James carried the offensive load with Davis out, scoring 31 points (10-16 FG) with eight rebounds and nine assists in the loss. Unfortunately, he had little support from his teammates while he contributed to the Lakers’ issues by giving up eight turnovers in the game.
The Lakers aren’t equipped to play without Davis, as the center is the focal point of their defensive setup. His absence emboldened the likes of Tyrese Maxey to attack the paint where he was met by either Jaxson Hayes or the out-of-position Dorian Finney-Smith. The result of this game likely would’ve been different if the 31-year-old center didn’t get hurt.
This result also could’ve been avoided if the Lakers heeded the recommendation of Davis and their coach JJ Redick by acquiring another center for the roster. There’s no backup for Davis on the roster while the center himself wants a starting-caliber player to join the roster so he can move to power forward.
If Davis is out for more than a couple of games, the Lakers will have to hunt for centers in the trade market. They already have been doing that with reported interests in role-playing centers around the NBA, but their pursuit of one should be amplified as they’re 26-19 and can’t afford to let their advantage wane.
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