Lakers’ Bug-a-Boo is Davis’ Health

Tuesday night in Philadelphia was supposed to be a matchup between two of the NBA’s best big men, Joel Embiid and Anthony Davis. 

Instead, Embiid missed his 12th consecutive game, and Davis was injured just 10 minutes into Tuesday’s 118-104 Laker loss. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported on Wednesday that Davis has an abdominal strain and will be re-evaluated in one week. 

The Lakers had won four consecutive games going into Tuesday, with Davis turning in a huge 42 points and 23 rebounds against the Charlotte Hornets on January 27. 

Averaging 25.7 points and 11.9 rebounds on 52.8 percent shooting this season, Davis has led the Lakers in scoring in 22 games, including 16 games of 30-plus points and registering at least 40 points three times. Few big guys have Davis’ ball handling, shooting, athleticism, and defensive abilities.

With LeBron James now 40 years old, the onus has been on Davis to consistently deliver to take pressure off James. So far this season, Davis has done that. 

One of the big issues for the 26-19 Lakers (fifth in the western conference) though, is Davis staying healthy. His health unfortunately has been an issue for him throughout his career, preventing him really from reaching his true potential. Never has he played 80 games, though he did suit up 76 times last season. 

As a New Orleans Pelican from 2012-2019, he was a dominating player (23.7 points, 10.5 rebounds) who was leading his own franchise. In Los Angeles, he put together dominant stretches too, like the 2020 NBA Finals (25.0 points, 10.7 rebounds) and what he has done this season. 

It has been said ad nauseum, but the Lakers’ success now and how far they can go is heavily dependent on the 31-year-old’s health, especially with how dominant he has been this season. 

The Western Conference is tight, with seeds five through 10 separated by just 2.5 games. At their best, the Lakers can compete with many upper echelon teams. They have traded for 3-and-D wing Dorian Finney-Smith (8.8 points on 37 percent from 3-point range in 12 games so far with the team) and recently got defensive dynamo Jarred Vanderbilt back on January 25.

But it all depends on health, starting with their All-NBA big man.