NBA play-in must-follow storylines: Warriors vs Lakers
NBA Play-in Key Question #1: Are LeBron James and Anthony Davis healthy?
Anthony Davis and LeBron James both played in the Lakers’ season finale, what amounted to a meaningless game for their playoff seeding. James landed on the foot of New Orleans Pelicans guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and seemed to aggravate an ankle injury that kept him out for weeks leading into the end of the season.
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The term “ankle sprain” seems like a light ailment; this is the same LeBron James who broke his hand punching a wall in the 2018 NBA Finals and played three more games without anyone knowing. Yet this is not the more common and mild low ankle sprain, but a high ankle sprain. More common in football, this is an injury that changes an NFL player’s entire season.
We likely aren’t weighing this heavily enough, even with all of the chatter around the Lakers leading into Wednesday night’s game. James is unlikely to be even close to 100 percent, a fact he himself has been telling the media. James will do everything he can not to miss the play-in game, but he could be seriously limited.
His wingman may not be 100 percent either. Anthony Davis missed months with an Achilles injury, came back rusty and then suffered a mild groin injury. While he will play Wednesday, he might be less than fully healthy and at a significant risk of reinjury during the game. With both of their stars at high risk for injuries more than what is already holding them back, the Lakers are at a severe disadvantage.