NBA insider: Anthony Davis injury timeline could be worse than initially reported

Just when it seems like the Lakers were turning the corner, Anthony Davis went down for at least a month with a foot injury. But it might be even longer than that.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before — a promising run of Lakers’ basketball derailed by injury. This time it’s Anthony Davis, who it was reported on Sunday would miss multiple weeks with a foot injury. If he can get back on the floor quickly the Lakers might be able to keep up their positive momentum.

However, on a new episode of the Hoop Collective podcast, Brian Windhorst seemed to be taking a more negative outlook.

“The Lakers haven’t made an official injury announcement yet,” said Windhorst. “Darvin Ham talked about it on Sunday. My feel is this is an injury where they are evaluating several different options on what to do, but suffice to say, he’s not going to be out a game or two. He’s going to be out an extended period.”

Windhorst went on to add, “it’s not a sprained ankle, it’s not a sprained foot, it’s something more concerning than that.”

Windhorst’s comments don’t really add any more specificity than the initial report of Davis likely being “sidelined multiple weeks” but they certainly seem to trend in a negative direction. Remember that Davis missed nearly six weeks with a sprained foot season and a similar recovery timeline could keep him out until just before the All-Star break. But Windhorst’s comments seem to imply that this could be even worse than a sprained foot and “different options” certainly bring the idea of surgery to mind.

Can the Lakers survive without Anthony Davis?

Davis was in the midst of arguably his best season in a Lakers’ uniform, averaging 27.4 points, 12.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.1 blocks per game, with a career-best 60.3 true-shooting percentage. The Lakers have struggled mightily without him on the floor, getting outscored by an average of 5.9 points per 100 possessions.

The recent return of Thomas Bryant has been a boon for their frontcourt but he’s nowhere near the player Davis is. On one hand, Davis’ absence might push the Lakers to be more aggressive in the trade market, planning for a late playoff push when he returns. But there’s also the possibility that the slide further in the standings or his absence seems like it’s going to drag on and then decide this season is a lost cause, forgoing a trade and waiting to reload until the offseason when Russell Westbrook’s contract comes off the books.

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