Is Lakers’ Anthony Davis alright after his back injury scare? Will we see him suit up against Damian Lillard and the Blazers?
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The Los Angeles Lakers host the Portland Trailblazers tonight. The Blazers are coming in red hot, fresh off an overtime win over Devin Booker and the Suns. They have started their season 2-0, and would like to keep the ball rolling for themselves.
On the other hand, the Lakers have suffered back-to-back losses to start their season. They went to San Francisco and lost to the Warriors. Then they came home and lost to the Clippers. Despite Anthony Davis dropping 25 points and eight rebounds, the Lakers just didn’t have enough firepower to secure a comeback win.
For the Lakers to succeed, AD must be THE Guy on the court. However, his staying healthy has been a thing of trouble. Last game, he gave the fans a scare, which has left them asking, will he play tonight?
Is Anthony Davis playing tonight?
In the game against the Clippers, Anthony Davis fell for a Kahwi Leonard pump fake in the post, and jumped over the Klaw.
It was a scary fall, and AD was slow to get up. He did return to the game, but it looked like he was in pain.
This begs the question of whether the Lakers would take it easy on their big or would they send him back to the court.
In the injury report issued by the team, he’s been listed as probable with lower back tightness. This back tightness has kept AD on the injury reports since the preseason. This might mean that his injury from the other day might have piled on his pre-existing injury or that it wasn’t significant.
Lakers’ injury report vs. Portland:
Troy Brown Jr., Anthony Davis and LeBron James are probable.
Thomas Bryant, Dennis Schroder and Coke Swider are out. pic.twitter.com/FjqpBr8OC5
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) October 22, 2022
We’ll have to wait and see whether AD does end up suiting up, or whether he rides the bench for the game against the Blazers.
Expectations from AD this season
Anthony Davis is an exceptional talent. He was wooed by LeBron James to the Lakers for helping him win championships. Together, they won the 2020 NBA Championship. However, since then, AD has been struggling with injuries. He’s only played in 72 out of the 154 games over the last two seasons.
If the Lakers want to make their way back to the playoffs, AD needs to step up and help LeBron out. LBJ is playing his 20th season, and he looks sharp. However, maintaining that level over the entire season would be tough.
AD needs to pick the slack, and become the centerpiece of the Lakers. He knows the same, and he’s claimed that he’d try and play all 82 games. It remains to be seen whether he’d be able to do so, and if that would help the Lakers as they hope.