Lakers' Anthony Davis Out After Suffering Head Injury vs. Stephen Curry, Warriors
Los Angeles Lakers big man Anthony Davis suffered a head injury in the fourth quarter of Wednesday's matchup with the Golden State Warriors and did not return:
After being evaluated in the locker room, he was ruled out for the remainder of the game, per Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes. Haynes later reported that Davis was brought out in a wheelchair before walking out of the arena himself:
"He took a shot to the head," head coach Darvin Ham said after the game. "He seems to be doing really good already. That's where he's at and the status of it right now."
Golden State went on to earn a 121-106 victory in Game 5, keeping the season alive while cutting the series to 3-2.
This is another setback for Davis, who has been plagued by injuries in recent seasons. He played 36 games in 2020-21, 40 games in 2021-22 and 56 games this season. A foot injury sidelined him for part of 2022-23.
Still, the Lakers likely need the 30-year-old healthy and on the floor if they are going to challenge for a championship.
The eight-time All-Star averaged 25.9 points, 12.5 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game during the regular season and remains one of the best frontcourt players in the league. He and LeBron James give the Lakers a potentially dominant one-two punch, especially in crunch time of playoff games when defenses have to account for both.
Los Angeles will likely turn toward Rui Hachimura for significant playing time if Davis is sidelined by this latest injury, but the ceiling will be much lower unless the latter can return.
