LOS ANGELES — For the last couple of days, Davis’ status for Wednesday Night’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies has been uncertain. Davis, who sustained a corneal abrasion to his eye in March, left Sunday night’s game against the Raptors in the third quarter after taking an inadvertent shot from center Jakob Poeltl. The injury immediately raised red flags for the Lakers’ medical staff and coaching team.
Jakob Poeltl’s off hand hit Davis in the face and eyes, making it difficult for the superstar forward to keep his left eye open. Luckily, the Lakers’ bench stepped up and took control, as Jaxson Hayes replaced Davis’ in the Lakers’ rotation and quickly contributed three dunks and a layup, helping the Lakers’ take the lead. Coming into the game, the Laker’s bench was near the bottom of the league in production, so it was about time we saw some positive changes. Hayes finished the game with an impressive 12 points and six rebounds.
Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis gets injured against the Toronto Raptors.
Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images
While the media went wild with speculation, coach JJ Redick didn’t seem overly concerned about the injury, saying, “He was having trouble seeing. Obviously taking a little bit of trauma to the eye, it takes a little bit of time to get your clear vision back. But other than that, no update.”
Davis has been the anchor of the Lakers organization so far this season. Coming into the game Davis was leading the NBA in scoring at 32.4 points per game, along with 11.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists. Over the course of this season, he’s already accrued a remarkable six 30-point games.
In a video released by Laker’s Nation, Davis addressed the issue, a-shooing any concerns:
“The eye is fine. I’m doing fine… Nothing happens next. I’m going about my days like I was. There’s like nothing that I need to do. Next step is getting some more sleep and getting ready for tomorrow.”
Davis is expected to play Wednesday night as the Lakers take on the star-studded Memphis Grizzlies. The Lakers are currently 5-0 at home and will be out for revenge, as the Grizzlies manhandled Los Angeles in their last meeting, putting up 131 points. Since then the Lakers’ have shown improvement in both their bench production and defensive play calling. We can expect a hard-fought battle tomorrow night.
