Morning Hoops Heads! Here’s the latest NBA news from around the league.
NBA News: Anthony Davis’ season hangs in the balance.
Things aren’t going well for the Lakers at the moment. They are 3-7 in their last 10 games and 13-19 overall, and probably won’t be able to claw their way back to 500 as long as star Anthony Davis remains out. Davis was previously expected to miss a month, but now that timetable has been updated to the much more ominous “indefinite.”
This is due to the diagnosis of a stress injury in his foot. That could lead to foot surgery, but for now, the Lakers and Davis are hoping to avoid that by having him rest it.
ESPN Sources: The pain has subsided in past several days in Anthony Davis' foot and he's expected to rest it for another 7-to-10 days and have it re-evaluated and see if he can return to play. For now, there's hope that a procedure can be avoided. https://t.co/4B2RXiAZTV
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) December 23, 2022
If the injury doesn’t heal on its own, he could be forced to have season-ending surgery, which would all but end the Lakers’ chances of making the playoffs. Even if he does return, then the Lakers could still be in a deep enough hole that they can’t dig themselves out of. We’ll know more in 7-10 days, but Lakers fans probably shouldn’t get their hopes up.
NBA News: The new Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame class
The newest nominees for the 2023 Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame class were recently announced, and it’s likely one of the best ever. Players such as Dwyane Wade, Paul Gasol, Tony Parker, Dirk Nowitzki, and coach Gregg Popovich are all expected to make it.
The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced the list of eligible candidates for the Class of 2023:
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 21, 2022
Dwyane Wade
Pau Gasol
Dirk Nowitzki
Tony Parker
Gregg Popovich pic.twitter.com/Prfxc98cQl
To be sure, that’s a lot of star power, and each has played an important role in NBA history. Nowitzki helped usher in the stretch big-man era and, over the course of his 21-season career, drained nearly 2,000 threes and scored more than 30,000 points. He also led the Mavericks to the NBA Finals twice and won in 2011.
Wade was the best shooting guard in the NBA at his peak and was key to turning the Miami Heat into a winner. He won three championships with the team and helped form the first superteam, which led to the player empowerment era.
Parker was initially the third-best player on the greatest NBA trio in NBA history. However, he later helped carry the Spurs to two NBA Finals as their best player. Playing under Popovich for 17 seasons, Parker won four titles and an NBA Finals MVP award and was consistently among the best point guards in the NBA for more than a decade.
Meanwhile, Popovich is still coaching and holds the record for most wins by an NBA coach. Additionally, he has five championships and three Coach of the Year awards. As for Gasol, he was the first star of the then-young Memphis Grizzlies franchise. Then he helped lead the Lakers to three straight NBA Finals and back-to-back championships. Overall, each nominee was crucial to the NBA and deserves a spot in the Hall.