Anthony Davis has been cleared to advance his on-court work for the Los Angeles Lakers.
As is the case for most teams who lose their two best players for an extended period of time, the Los Angeles Lakers have struggled since Anthony Davis went down with a right calf strain on Feb. 14, and things got even worse once LeBron James suffered a high ankle sprain last week.
James is expected to be out for another 3-5 weeks, but AD’s timeline has remained murky.
While there’s still no concrete timetable for the Brow’s return, Lakers fans got a positive injury update Friday night, as ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that Davis has been cleared to increase his on-court activity after his latest evaluation.
McMenamin said he will advance with “increased volume and intensity in shooting, dribbling and position specific drills,” but head coach Frank Vogel said he’s still “a ways away” from returning.
The Lakers need Anthony Davis and LeBron James back ASAP
When Davis got hurt nearly six weeks ago, the Lakers were the No. 1 team in the Western Conference at 21-6. Since then, they’ve gone 8-11, dropping to fourth in the conference standings and only just managing to end a four-game losing streak with a home win over the lowly Cleveland Cavaliers.
It’s no coincidence that four-game skid came right as LeBron James went down, and Friday’s win over Cleveland marked the team’s first victory without its two superstars. In the meantime, the Lakers are plummeting down the standings, with the Denver Nuggets (No. 5) and Portland Trail Blazers (No. 6) only 1.5 games behind them now.
James won’t be back for another month, and the Lakers stood pat at the trade deadline, so no reinforcements are coming aside from their two best players slowly getting healthy. That means any increased activity for Davis is a good thing, but unfortunately, it sounds like his return date is still up in the air.
The Lakers’ road to repeating might be a lot more difficult than it was in the bubble depending on how long it takes for the Brow to get back on the court.