Injuries and health have been a top priority for the Los Angeles Lakers all season long, but even more so now as the team prepares for a postseason run. Making sure that, especially, Anthony Davis and LeBron James are good to go is of the utmost importance.
Coming off a four-game road trip and on the second night of a back-to-back, there were some concerns about the availability of the Lakers’ stars for Wednesday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers. But after going through pregame warmups, both Davis and LeBron were deemed good to suit up.
For Davis, who hadn’t played in a back-to-back in months, there was a mental aspect going into the game of not knowing how his body would react. But the Lakers big man was happy to get through the contest, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“Trying to see how it feels before the game, from a physical standpoint. Mentally, obviously I haven’t played a back-to-back in a long time. So just mentally being prepared to try to play, not sure how the foot is gonna react, but I was able to get through the game.”
The Lakers big man would also give an update on himself physically, noting that he’ll be fine:
“I’ve been better. But I’ll be fine.”
While things were unclear leading into the game, Davis always felt like he would be suiting up against the Clippers just because of how big the game was. But he added that the Lakers being fully healthy is an overall positive for this final stretch:
“I probably had it in my mind that I was gonna play regardless just because the game [was so important]. But I think we gained more chemistry. Even though it’s not the result we wanted we were able to get a healthy squad. Even though Mo didn’t play, just getting him back. Getting all our guys back and healthy and getting reps out on the floor for these last two games and then leading into the playoffs.”
The Lakers have two games remaining in the regular season before getting ready for what will almost definitely be a trip to the Play-In Tournament. The team will need to have everything in order to ensure they are able to make that postseason run they are aiming for.
Lakers’ D’Angelo Russell will need to manage foot soreness for rest of year
As Davis noted, the Lakers were at full strength for the game against the Clippers which meant that D’Angelo Russell was back on the court after missing the previous game due to foot soreness.
The injury came out of nowhere for Russell, but after the game he simply revealed that the issue was a matter of wear and tear built up over the season before adding that it is something he will have to manage for the rest of the year.
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