All-NBA big man Anthony Davis was viewed as the centerpiece of the next Los Angeles Lakers dynasty alongside an aging LeBron James. But injuries have limited the young star during his Lakers tenure. Last year Davis missed 36 games in the regular season due to an Achilles injury and then suffered a groin injury in Game 4 of the Lakers’ first-round series against the Phoenix Suns. That injury ultimately led to the Suns eliminating the Lakers in six games. It was also the first time James had been eliminated in the first round in his 18-year career.
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Anthony Davis ‘Probable’ for Nets Showdown
This year Davis has once again missed an extended period. In a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves on December 17, he sprained his MCL. That injury has caused him to miss 17 games so far this season. But Davis’ return is on the horizon as the 8-time All-Star’s status has been upgraded to probable for Tuesday’s matchup with the Brooklyn Nets per Sham Charania of “The Athletic”.
“After missing over one month with MCL sprain, Lakers star Anthony Davis is probable to return on Tuesday night vs. the Nets in Brooklyn,” Charania tweeted on Monday.
Nets, Lakers Christmas Matchup Had High Drama
When the 2022 NBA schedule was released the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers Christmas Day game was supposed to be one of the blockbuster matchups of the regular season. Davis wasn’t available when the Nets played the Lakers on Christmas Day. Neither was Kevin Durant nor Kyrie Irving who were both in health and safety protocols.
Even though most of the stars were on the injury report for both teams, the contest was every bit as good advertised. Brooklyn stayed in control for most of the game but saw a 23-point 4th quarter lead disappear. In the end, a play that Nets head coach Steve Nash drew up in the final minute led to a poster dunk by Nicolas Claxton on LeBron that sealed a 122-115 win for Brooklyn.
LeBron Had ‘No Doubt’ Durant Would Be Good Again
Durant still won’t be with the team for this matchup as he is scheduled to miss 4-6 weeks with an MCL sprain, the same injury that Davis is scheduled to return from. LeBron and Durant haven’t shared the floor since the Lakers faced off against the Warriors in January of 2019 but the two have a long history of battles. The two rivals have faced in the NBA Finals three times with Durant besting LeBron twice in 2017 and 2018.
KD tore his Achilles in the 2019 NBA Finals and some wondered if he would return as the star the world had become accustomed to seeing. But LeBron says there was no doubt in his mind that Durant would return better than ever.
“There was never any doubt from myself or anybody in this league,” LeBron told reporters per Landon Buford. “I heard there was only like really 1 group of people that had any doubt on him coming back full strength. Not going to name them.”
The Lakers right now sit at 8th place in the Western Conference. So the chances of LeBron and Durant meeting again in the Finals this year are very slim. But as history has shown, you can never completely rule out a team that has LeBron on the roster.
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