Getty Images Head coach Frank Vogel of the Los Angeles Lakers converses with Anthony Davis.
The Los Angeles Lakers say “nothing has changed” regarding Anthony Davis, disputing a report that started circulating saying that he could miss three weeks or more recovering from his calf and Achilles injuries.
Trusted NBA insider Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported the news on Davis, who has not played in over a month.
Sources informed Yahoo Sports that Davis could be sidelined for the next three weeks and possibly beyond. The Lakers will be overly cautious in their approach to working Davis back even at the cost of slipping in the standings, which has occurred.
Lakers head coach Frank Vogel responded to that report saying nothing has changed and that his eight-time All-Star will be re-evaluated in two weeks.
Frank Vogel says “nothing has changed” in terms of their plans with Anthony Davis. He’ll be re-evaluated in two weeks as planned.
That jibes with the latest update on Davis from the Lakers had him out the next two weeks as he begins the next step of his rehab process.
Anthony Davis was examined by team doctors this evening. He is progressing in his recovery and has been cleared to enter the next phase of his return to play process. He will be re-evaluated by team doctors in two weeks and an update will be given at that time.
The Lakers have to strike a fine balance between keeping Davis healthy and making sure he’s ready and in rhythm for the postseason. He’d have just 22 games prior to the playoffs to get in game-shape if he misses three additional weeks and less than that depending on how much more time he’d be out.
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Anthony Davis Spotted Shooting Pregame
Davis has been traveling with the Lakers and was in the building as they took on Golden State Warriors on Monday. He was seen putting up shots, although he never got off the ground while shooting.
Anthony Davis getting up shots here at Chase pregame. He’s not jumping on his jumper which i’m sure is intentional.
Still nice to see after reports surfaced today that he will be out another three weeks at least.
Vogel has been open that the team is being overly cautious with Davis
“We anticipated it’s going to be a little bit of a build-up once we got back [from the All-Star break],” Lakers coach Frank Vogel told reporters last week. “We’ll be patient. We’ll continue to compete and win games. And we’ll all be very excited when we finally get [Davis] back.”
The Lakers entered Monday 25-13, sitting in third place in the Western Conference. And despite losing seven of 10 before the All-Star break, the Lakers are just three games back of the first-place Jazz.
That being said, the West is an ultra-tight race and a losing streak could prove costly in terms of seeding. However, in a year where a home-court edge will mostly be neutralized, LA doesn’t need to fret too much about falling a few spots, especially if it helps the squad stay healthy for the postseason.
Anthony Davis Still in Good Spirits on Bench
While Davis would like to be on the court and healthy, it seems he’s making the best of being on the bench, giving his teammates a few playful jabs when he can. Dennis Schroder, one of his new teammates, shared an exchange he had with Davis on the bench after tossing a lob to center Damian Jones.
“Since he’s been out, he got on me when Damian Jones set a pick on the left wing and I found him for the alley-oop right away. He looked at me, and he was like ‘Why can’t you do that with me?'” Schroder said. “We’re still trying to figure it out. I think when he comes back, I’m going to put more pressure on myself to find him even more for the lobs because I think nobody can stop that.”
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