Lakers’ Anthony Davis misses second straight game with knee soreness, could return soon

LOS ANGELES – Some 2 hours earlier tip-off, Anthony Davis was hanging astir the tribunal during his mean warm-up time, adjacent firing bombs from deep.

That hopeful motion was undercut conscionable minutes aboriginal erstwhile Lakers manager Frank Vogel announced Davis would miss his 2nd consecutive crippled with left genu soreness.

But the squad is upbeat that it volition beryllium the past crippled the 28-year-old volition miss with this peculiar issue. Vogel circled Wednesday’s crippled successful Dallas, the commencement of a three-game roadworthy trip, for his imaginable return.

“We did an ultrasound connected it,” Vogel said. “Everything is structurally intact. Just taking different day, with the 2 days disconnected earlier the adjacent game, and hopefully we’ll enactment this down us.”

All-in-all, the cleanable ultrasound was bully quality for the Lakers who dealt with tricky issues successful Davis’ legs past season. He missed fractional of the regular play docket dealing with an Achilles strain, past strained his groin against Phoenix during the archetypal circular of the playoffs. Davis beefed up his offseason conditioning successful hopes of being much durable, which had worked retired good until Friday night.

Davis has present missed 3 of the Lakers’ 28 games truthful far, with his teammates salvaging the erstwhile two. He besides missed astir of a November nonaccomplishment against Portland which helium started, but yet near due to the fact that of flu-like symptoms.

He’s averaging 24 points, 10.2 rebounds and 2.2 blocks successful his games this season.

The Lakers started Dwight Howard astatine halfway for the 2nd consecutive crippled successful Davis’ absence, but the 6-foot-10 large antheral is cardinal to the Lakers’ smaller lineups wherever helium plays center. While lineups with Davis person an wide minus-2.6 rating, the 5 most-played versions of those lineups each person affirmative nett ratings, and Vogel has enactment Davis astatine halfway to adjacent successful the bulk of games.

The squad continues to slope that Trevor Ariza’s instrumentality from ankle country successful October volition assistance equilibrium those lineups better. In the meantime, the Lakers person toggled done antithetic lineups, particularly astatine the defender presumption alongside Westbrook. On Sunday, Talen Horton-Tucker and Avery Bradley were again the starting guards.

When Davis comes back, Vogel said, he’ll proceed to prioritize defence and shooting. To date, Bradley has started 20 games, Horton-Tucker has started 12; Malik Monk and Wayne Ellington person each started 2 portion Kent Bazemore, who started 13 games, has been retired of the rotation.

The trick, Vogel said, is letting each subordinate hew to his strengths.

“Wayne is going to person much of a greenish airy than immoderate of the different guys,” helium said. “Talen is going to person much of a greenish airy to onslaught the handbasket than immoderate of the different guys. Avery is going to person much of a greenish airy to unit the hoops than immoderate of the different guys and obviously, Malik too, consecutive connected down the line. Everybody conscionable has to play to their strengths but to enactment Russ, Bron and AD, those perimeter spots astir them person to play with large effort.”