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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Lakers in peril

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ANTHONY Davis is injured.  Will it affect the future of the Los Angeles Lakers?

In a sense, yes.  That is, if the injury would cost Davis the season. As I write this, the 6-foot-10 Davis is due for an MRI.

There is no doubt that Davis is LeBron James’s inseparable partner in the Lakers’ “Deadly Duo.” They proved that last year when they powered Los Angeles to the National Basketball Association (NBA) championship as the Lakers snapped a 10-year losing drought.

It was LA’s 17th crown overall, tying the NBA record set by the Lakers’ arch-rivals, the Boston Celtics.

The Lakers seemed bent on breaking their tie with the Celtics as they are doing pretty well in the Western Conference this early.

Until Sunday.

Davis aggravated his Achilles injury against Denver in a game that saw the consistently prolific Nikola Jokic complete a triple double of 23 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in leading the Nuggets to a 122-105 victory.

It was Jokic’s sixth triple double of the season as both teams rekindled the intensity of their 2020 Western Conference finals decisively won by the Lakers, 4-1.

But more significantly, the loss broke the Lakers’ seven-game winning streak—all because Davis reinjured his right Achilles.

It happened in the second half, rendering the Lakers lame both in defense and offense the rest of the way.

With 2:39 left in the third quarter, Davis bumped legs with Jokic, sending Davis to limp his way to the dressing room after shooting his free throws.

“I don’t want to mess around with this type of injury,” said a dejected Davis.  “Just trying to figure out the best steps.”

Previous to this, Davis, who had 15 points in 14 minutes last Sunday, missed two games last week with tendonitis of the Achilles.

Still, the Lakers won both matches without him—and also Alex Caruso—all because James’s all-around game held.

James was still at his usual best in the Denver game, even as he missed his own triple double by a solitary feed in collecting 22 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.

I’m sure James, last season’s MVP (Most Valuable Player) for the fourth time in as many Finals appearances, can continue producing superlative performances.

But without Davis, the absence could take its toll on James in the long run.  Acid test.

THAT’S IT Even as Austria’s Dominic Thiem, seeded No. 3 and the reigning US Open champion, got ousted by Bulgaria’s No. 19  Grigor Dimitrov in straight stunning sets (Thiem was blanked in the third set, 6-0), the Australian Open plods on resiliently.  The event bucked a virus spread two days ago, blocking 30,000 fans from entering the stadium and offering ticket refunds.  The lockdown will last five days.  Hang in there, mate!

Read full article on BusinessMirror

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