After winning four games in a row and nine of their last 10, the Los Angeles Lakers had their momentum come to a screeching halt, at least for the moment, on Sunday against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
They were without LeBron James, who was ruled out prior to the tip because of an illness. Then Anthony Davis was hit in the eye and didn’t play past the first quarter. As a result, the Lakers didn’t have enough firepower to challenge the Timberwolves and lost by 10 points.
This wasn’t the first time Davis has gotten hit in the eye this season. He suffered a similar injury on March 16 versus the Golden State Warriors, who will be L.A.’s opponent on Tuesday.
Per Dave McMenamin of ESPN, the team is optimistic Davis will be able to play on Tuesday.
There is optimism that Anthony Davis will be able to return to the lineup on Tuesday against GSW, a source familiar with the situation told ESPN.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) April 8, 2024
The Lakers have fallen back into ninth place in the Western Conference after Sunday’s loss. Therefore, if they are to have any chance of finishing in the upper bracket of the play-in tournament picture, let alone avoiding the play-in tournament, they will need to win each of their remaining three regular-season games.
That would mean both James and Davis will need to be available for each of those contests.
