Anthony Davis has had his fair share of bumps and bruises this season with the Los Angeles Lakers, and while he's only missed two games so far, every time he falls to the ground players and fans alike hold their breath waiting to see if he's okay. That was no different when Davis suffered a nasty fall during the Lakers' 117-87 win over the New York Knicks on Tuesday night.
Late in the third quarter, Davis went up to try and block a shot by Julius Randle, and was knocked off balance in mid-air. He crashed hard to the ground, and landed with a thud, right on his lower back. He immediately grabbed for the area, and writhed around on the floor in pain. While the injury appeared to be serious, the Lakers say an MRI on Davis' lower back Wednesday morning came back clean and revealed a gluteus maximus contusion, as reported by USA Today's Mark Medina. Davis will travel with the team on their upcoming two-game road trip against the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder, and is listed as questionable for the Friday night game against the Mavericks.
AD heads to locker room after scary fall on back.
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 8, 2020
Hope he's ok 🙏 pic.twitter.com/TZgQGuQKnd
When the injury took place, the Lakers medical staff immediately made their way out to the floor to check on Davis, and his teammates all huddled around him in concern. After a few minutes, Davis was helped to his feet, and was able to hobble off the floor under his own power. He appeared to be in a great deal of pain, and as cameras followed him down the tunnel, it was clear he could barely move, and a stretcher even arrived as a precaution. Davis initially underwent X-rays at the arena, and according to the team those were negative. He was diagnosed with a sacral contusion, which is a bruise to the bone just above the tailbone.
Without Davis' status against the Mavericks and Thunder likely up in the air, the Lakers will have their hands full as they try to extend their current six-game winning streak. What's more important, though, is the fact that this does not appear to be a long-term injury concern for Davis.