Return of Davis is likely tonight
Lakers star poised to rejoin lineup at Dallas
The first person to fear the worst was Anthony Davis himself.
He was driving against Nikola Jokic during the second quarter of the Lakers’ Feb. 14 game in Denver when he felt a kind of pain he had never experienced before in his right calf: a sharp pain, “like it was ripping.” Davis had heard stories from people who have rup- tured their Achilles tendons — one of the most devastating sports injuries — that the sensation felt like their calf muscle rolling up under their skin. This was not that, but hell, did it hurt.
“Flexing my foot and things like that were very painful,” he said. “So I knew it was something serious.”
While the Lakers have had to weather more than two months without Davis, the 28-year-old star who they recently signed to a five-year maximum contract, they might find in the end that they got off easy. The eight-time All-Star is finally poised to return to the starting lineup tonight in Dallas, assuming his troublesome right calf feels well after a full-contact practice on Wednesday morning.
The injury took longer to rehab than anticipated: At the four-week mark, Davis said he did some tests and felt lingering pain, which shelved him for longer. But after going through the same tests last week and on-court workouts in the days since, Davis said he feels “100 percent healthy” and is looking forward to returning to a group that has held on to fifth place in the Western Conference without him (and for the past month, without LeBron James as well).
“The guys have done a great job of making sure that we stay in the fight while LeBron and myself have been out,” he said. “And now that I’m near return — I think (LeBron) probably has a couple weeks or so, I’m guessing — it’s going to be my job to try to help the team stay afloat until he comes back as well and stay fighting.”
The plan is for Davis to start against the Mavericks but play no more than 15 minutes. Coach Frank Vogel said he doesn’t imagine the restrictions on his minutes will last beyond Davis’ first few games, but he acknowledged it could take weeks
for the forward to get his playing rhythm and conditioning back. Davis himself acknowledged: “no matter what you do, you can’t emulate basketball shape.”
With James potentially missing the majority of the remaining 14 regular-season games, the Lakers will have the chance to tackle a challenge that has often dogged them in the Davis era. While the team generally wins the minutes James plays, Davis’ minutes without James are generally average. Last season, the Lakers outscored opponents by 6.6 points per game when James was on the court, and 3.9 when Davis was on the court (comparable to Danny Green and Alex Caruso’s plus-minus per game). “This has been an area that’s been hit-or-miss for us the last two years, performing when Bron’s out,” Vogel said. “These extended minutes should be a silver lining in helping us be better in those stretches.”
The Lakers are hoping Davis’ scoring touch will bring a boost to what has been one of the league’s least productive offenses since he was injured, ranking 26th (107.7) in offensive rating during that span. The team had a 21-6 record before Davis was injured, but a spate of even more medical concerns has led the franchise to go just 14-17 since.
During those two months, Davis could often be seen on the sidelines in designer sweaters, looking over videos and plays on iPads, coaxing teammates during timeouts, and celebrating big plays. Vogel joked that Davis had become a reluctant assistant coach, but Davis himself ended up seeing value in finding ways to lead with his voice rather than just his play.
“I think that’s how I stayed engaged, and kind of got my fix of not being able to play,” he said. “Just being in the gym with the guys and the games, breaking down the games and different plays for the guys and helping them learn, and it kind of helped me become a better leader as well — like a vocal leader talking to the guys, and helping them out.”
The on-court part of Davis’ contributions now comes to the forefront. The Lakers are a different team from the one he left, notably adding center Andre Drummond and wing Ben McLemore. Drummond and Davis are friendly from their time together with USA Basketball, and while Vogel said it could take some time for the two big men to figure out how they interlock in their styles, Davis seemed optimistic that the relationship could be fast-tracked.
When the two played together in Wednesday’s practice, Davis said Drummond peppered him with questions: where he needs to be positioned; where he needs to move when Davis catches the ball. The banter is a hopeful sign.
“He’s been great for us so far, I think it’s only going to get better the more he continues to learn the system,” Davis said. “When Bron gets back, he’ll get his lobs and he can be the Andre Drummond that everybody is looking forward to — which he’s been, but he’s really going to, I think, blossom, and show everyone why he wanted to come here.”
Time is of the essence: With just more than a dozen games left, the Lakers have a lot of work to do before the playoffs begin. Davis said he feels fortunate overall: He’s healthy, and the Lakers are reasonably close to full strength (which James being the notable exception). Many other teams are ailing too, missing stars for long stretches. It might be that the Lakers are getting back to top gear at just the right time.
As for blending the pieces together, Davis said the challenge has some common traits with their time in the Florida bubble last season, when the Lakers had just eight regular-season games to find their postseason form after the pandemic shutdown. That past experience seemed to add to his confidence — which almost seems at full strength, too.
“I think there are parallels but we’re going to figure it out, for sure,” he said. “We’re going to figure it out and find ways to win ball games.”