Lakers’ Anthony Davis Suffers Abdominal Strain Against 76ers

Los Angeles Lakers center Anthony Davis exited early in Tuesday night’s 118-104 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers with an abdominal muscle strain and did not return. Davis left with 2:10 remaining in the first quarter and immediately went to the locker room for examination.

Los Angeles Lakers’ Anthony Davis ended his outing with four points, two rebounds, and a steal against the Philadelphia 76ers

Davis finished with four points, two rebounds, and a steal. The Sixers were leading 73-57 by the time he was ruled out for the rest of the game at halftime.

“When our best player goes out, it’s always challenging,” said LeBron James, who had 31 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists but also committed eight turnovers.

The Lakers say Anthony Davis (abdominal muscle strain) is out for the remainder of tonight’s game.

— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) January 29, 2025

“If he’s out from the beginning, then we have a game plan set. We know what to expect, we know what our lineup is going to be. But when AD or any one of our guys go down throughout the course of a game, it’s just tough.”

According to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, Davis did not speak to reporters after the game, and when asked about Davis’ status moving forward, James said, “I think he’ll be fine.”

Dorian Finney-Smith replaced Davis in the third quarter

Dorian Finney-Smith started the third quarter in Anthony Davis’ spot.

The Lakers were able to cut the 76ers’ lead to 12 in the third quarter before back-to-back turnovers by James led to two straight 3-pointers that fueled an offensive turnaround for Philadelphia.

“We actually found something good in the second half, and then we just didn’t execute in two of those turnovers that he had were on those plays,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “I attribute that to just a lot of fatigue.”

In 42 games (all starts) this season, Davis is averaging 25.7 points, 11.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.3 steals, 2.1 blocks, and 34.3 minutes per contest while shooting 52.8% from the field and 78.8% at the free throw line.

In addition to recording 32 double-doubles, he is currently ninth in the NBA this season in points (1,081), fifth in total rebounds (499), sixth in defensive boards (380), and second in blocks (90).

“He’s playing at a really high level right now,” Redick said of Davis before the Sixers game. “He’s got his pop and his juice back.”

The Lakers continue their five-game road trip in Washington on Thursday and New York on Saturday before returning to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers in another road game at the Intuit Dome on Tuesday.