Xavier Henry's Scary, Bloody Moment During Friday's Lakers Game

Either Los Angeles Lakers guard Xavier Henry is playing the wrong sport or NBA players are a lot tougher than people think.

Henry, a former lottery pick of the Memphis Grizzlies playing his first season in L.A., took a nasty shot early in the second quarter of L.A.'s game against the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night.

The lefty Henry started a drive on the right wing against Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard. After speeding past Leonard, Henry tried switching back to his left hand over Spurs big man Jeff Ayres. But the two players collided, and Henry's head hit Lakers forward Wes Johnson's knee on the way down.

After Lakers trainer Gary Vitti couldn't stop the bleeding, Henry's two-inch gash required stitches, a bandage and a compression cap, via Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. 

Henry's comments to Medina after the game were exactly what you'd expect after watching the video. "My head’s going to hurt," Henry said. "My head hurts pretty good."

He later returned to the floor—compression cap and all—because, as NBC Sports' Kurt Helin put it, "that’s what hockey players… or some basketball players do."

His Lakers, though, never recovered. The Spurs went on a 15-2 run after Henry left, trimming a 15-point deficit to just two points. San Antonio went on to win the game 91-85, giving the Lakers back-to-back losses after their opening night win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Henry might not seem like the biggest loss—he's averaged just 4.7 points per game in his career—but he has found a niche with these bruised and battered Lakers. Even after last night's three-point performance, he's still averaging 13.0 points per game on the year.

With Kobe Bryant still working his way back from the torn Achilles tendon that ended his 2012-13 campaign, the Lakers don't have many bodies to spare on the wing.

Henry, before and after the 9 stitches, looks like a gamer. The kind of tough guy some fans seem to think exists only in a different winter sport.

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