Anthony Davis is out and the Los Angeles Lakers star is not willing to give a timeline for when he could be back on the court.
Davis has multiple things going on with his right foot, the most pressing being a stress injury. The All-Star big man is dealing with a bone spur off the navicular bone, which is the same bone that has the stress fracture, per ESPN. He suffered the injury against the Nuggets on December 16 and has not played since.
Davis spoke to reporters prior to the Lakers’ matchup with the Hawks on December 30 and gave some insight into what he’s dealing with and the progress he’s made. However, Davis was also timid about giving a potential timeline for when he’ll be on the court again.
“Feeling a lot better, pain has subsided tremendously,” Davis told reporters. “I think the next step is [the foot] healing right now. I don’t want to use timetables because that’s a whole different thing, but it’s healing pretty quickly.
“So when we get back to L.A., we’ll do another image of the foot, and see how far it’s healed.”
Anthony Davis Trying to Avoid Surgery
Davis is trying to avoid surgery, which would add a significant period of time to his recovery. It might still be necessary in the offseason but he wants to try to get back as soon as possible and aid the Lakers in their pursuit of a postseason berth.
“When they were talking about surgery – well, I don’t like surgery,” Davis said. “I feel like if it can be avoided, then let’s avoid it. When that became an option, I wanted to make sure I get the best understanding for me because I’m the one who has to make the decision with that.”
Davis has never played in every game in his 10 seasons and has missed significant chunks of time in his last two. He appeared in just 76 games the previous two seasons combined and stated his goal this year is to be available for the Lakers in every matchup.
For Davis, it’s all about managing the pain, which wasn’t possible early on when the injury occurred. He reiterated that the pain has subsided and is very subtle on most days. Davis has started working in the weight room but has yet to get back on the practice court.
“It’s really just about pain,” Davis said. “The pain is still there, I still feel it a little bit, not as much as I did before. More like a two (on a scale from one to 10), trending down to one. I’ve been lifting, and lifting is fine. Everything I do in the weight room is fine. If I see that it’s healed properly, or enough where I can go start ramping up on the court, then we’ll start that process.”
Anthony Davis Not Worried About Getting Back in Rhythm
Davis was playing some of the best basketball of his career when he went out. Davis was averaging 27.4 points with career-best numbers in rebounds per game (12.1) and field goal percentage (59.4%). He was also a major piece of the Lakers’ defense, providing an intimidating presence in the paint with more than two blocks per game.
“I’m just really excited to get back on the floor, whenever that date is, to pick up where I left off,” Davis said. “That’s my mindset. Hasn’t been a ‘Man, it’s going to take me X amount of games to get back in rhythm,’ or ‘Might not be the same.’ That’s not even been a thought in my mind. My thought has been, ‘Whenever that day is, it’s go time.’”
Davis has been missed and the Lakers have understandably had a hard time replacing the contributions of an All-NBA talent. The Lakers entered their game on Friday night against the Hawks with a 14-21 record, dropping five of their last six.
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Lakers Star Anthony Davis Breaks Silence on Long-Term Injury