Getty Lakers big man Anthony Davis
Los Angeles Lakers big man Anthony Davis only played in 36 games last season during the 72-game campaign due to injuries. This season hasn’t been any better for the Chicago native, who appeared in his 39th game on April 4 versus the Denver Nuggets.
Davis has suffered two serious injuries this season. He sprained his MCL in his left knee in December against the Minnesota Timberwolves and missed 17 consecutive games. The superstar made his grand return to the lineup in January versus the Brooklyn Nets, but AD only stayed healthy for 10 games before spraining his right ankle and missing 18 games.
Davis gets made fun of by many pundits — most notably Charles Barkley — for always being hurt. The one-time champion, who is averaging 23.2 points and 9.8 rebounds this season, fired back at his critics during an interview with Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times.
“This is what I’ve learned about injuries,” Davis said. “Last year when I wasn’t playing, people were saying, ‘AD’s giving up on his team. It’s the playoffs. AD has to play. He’s got to play.’ And when I went out there to play, got hurt again, they said, ‘Who was his trainer? Who let him play?’
“So, what the [expletive] do you want me to do? When I play, it’s a problem. It’s a problem when I don’t play. At the end of the day, I’ve got to do what’s best for me and how my body feels. And we go from there. I’m not worried about who’s saying what or who thinks this about me because none of them have stepped on the floor and played. And the ones that did play, they should understand. These aren’t little ticky-tack injuries.”
Davis suffered his knee injury after LeBron James accidentally knocked Timberwolves swingman Jaden McDaniels into the side of his leg. The All-Star then injured his foot after stepping on the foot of Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert. These are fluke injuries that can happen to anyone, something Davis discussed with Woike.
Davis: ‘These Really Weren’t My Fault’
Barkley started calling Davis “Street Clothes” last season. The Brow has never played more than 75 games in a single season. However, many of his injuries are just bad luck.
“The real basketball guys know that there’s nothing I could’ve done in these situations,” Davis told Woike. “What? Move out the way? I keep that attitude because, one, my wife makes me, and two, it’s knowing that these really weren’t my fault. How can I be down or upset or care what people are saying? It could’ve been anybody. I could wear shoes that come up to my knees. There’s not one player in the world who could step on somebody’s foot from the air and not roll your ankle. It doesn’t matter the shoe. You step on somebody’s foot, you’re going to roll your ankle.”
The Lakers were projected to compete for the championship this season after acquiring Russell Westbrook from the Washington Wizards last summer. LA’s Big Three of LeBron, Davis and Westbrook looked good on paper.
However, the Lakers are not only not title contenders, but they also are in serious danger of missing the play-in tournament.
Davis Ponders What ‘Could Have Been’
Davis looked back at a season gone wrong and reflected on what “could have been” after the Lakers lost their sixth game in a row against the Nuggets.
“I think the biggest thing that I think about personally is what we could have been, had we stayed healthy all year,” Davis said. “What could we have been. … Guys feel like, ‘OK, what could we have been if I was healthy all year, Bron was healthy, [Kendrick] Nunn was healthy.’ You think about those things. We put this team together and it looked good on paper, but we haven’t had a chance to reach that potential with guys in and out of the lineup. So the most frustrating part of this season is not being sure of what we could have been.”
Davis and the Lakers have four games left in the regular season.