Anthony Davis missed just one game due to the hip spasms he recently suffered but he admitted the injury is still bothering him some. But the Los Angeles Lakers’ superstar is playing through the pain while continuing treatment to improve his condition.
On Sunday night, Davis looked like his normal self, finishing with 27 points and 10 rebounds in the Lakers’ one-point win over the Houston Rockets. The excellent performance coincided with Davis feeling better physically coming into the contest as well.
“Yeah, I was able to get up and get some treatment at the house,” Davis said after the game. “It felt good coming into today so we’ll see what it is [moving forward].”
If Davis can continue to attack that injury and improve it, both he and the Lakers would greatly benefit as he is so crucial to the success of the team. Injuries have been the story of Davis’ career and he is working hard to break that narrative in L.A.
Davis is playing through the issue right now but he doesn’t view that as a challenge, just himself doing anything he can to help the Lakers.
“I don’t even think it’s a challenge for me. Just wanting to go out and play at the end of the day,” Davis added. “Everybody is dealing with whatever they got going on and I just try to go out there knowing I can be a presence on the floor and knowing that being on the floor helps my team.
“I’m never going to put myself in a situation where I can probably miss an extended period of time but if I feel comfortable and the medical staff and my team feels comfortable to go out and play, then I’m gonna do that. I’ve been feeling good. Obviously any time you have an injury and you go play, you can’t control if you get hit or anything, movements and things like that. But for the most part, I feel good when I’m out there playing.”
And Lakers head coach Darvin Ham echoed those sentiments, making it clear that the staff will make sure he can’t worse his condition, and praising Davis for working hard and pushing through.
“First and foremost, as I always say and we wholeheartedly believe in, just knowing 100% that we’re not putting him in a position to do further damage or expose him to a more serious injury. We checked those boxes, crossed our Ts, dotted our Is and now it’s just a matter of the more we can get it treated, if we have time, great, if not a lot of it is on the fly.
“But again, those guys, both he and Bron, they push through a lot of different ailments and we’re constantly monitoring that situation and with AD specifically, just constantly checking in with him, constantly working on him during timeouts, during halftime, in between quarters. Just helping him manage it and eventually that area will restrengthen itself along with the work that is being put in on it. He’ll continue to push through.”
Davis is working hard to change these narratives around him and the Lakers will gladly continue to take these kinds of performances.
Lakers’ Anthony Davis focused on defense as hip bothers him
What makes Davis so special is the many areas in which he can impact the game. His offense was on point against the Rockets, but that hadn’t been the case in the prior couple of games.
But Davis noted that even when he can’t quite be himself on offense, he looks to make up for it on the other side of the ball, being an absolute menace on the defensive end and playing a huge role in Lakers’ victories.
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!