Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis was forced to leave Sunday’s loss to the Denver Nuggets after re-aggravating an Achilles injury, ESPN reported, and an extended absence may be on the way, according to sports medicine expert Dr. David Chao of OutKick.
“Clearly he has re-aggravated the right Achilles tendon, but at least by video, there does not seem to be a complete tear,” Chao wrote.
Davis will undergo an MRI on Monday, and as he told reporters, “you learn a lot from the MRI.”
How much time Davis misses, of course, will depend on the severity of the injury. Entering Sunday night, it was considered tendinosis.
“The blood flow to the tendon is poor so healing takes longer, just like a paper cut often heals slower than when you cut yourself shaving,” Chao explained. “Also there is increased risk of complete Achilles rupture, which would mean surgery and missing an entire calendar year.”
The Lakers are hoping to avoid that worst-case scenario, which is why we may not see Davis again for a while, predicted Chao, the former head physician of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers.
“At this point, I would be surprised if he played again in February,” Chao wrote. “A good result would be a full return in March, but this issue could easily extend to April and beyond.”
Davis, 27, is averaging 22.5 points and 8.4 rebounds for the defending champion Lakers (21-7).
“Obviously, the doctors don’t want to rule out anything and then it’s something, or say it’s something, then it’s not,” Davis said. “But they say everything looks good, but you still want the MRI just to make sure.”
