The Los Angeles Lakers can breathe a sigh of relief.
Anthony Davis’ MRI on his sprained right thumb returned clean, as first reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. As previously expected, that means little to no ligament damage which will severely impact Davis’ ability to return from the injury quickly.
The big man injured his thumb in the Lakers’ second preseason matchup against the Brooklyn Nets in China on Saturday.
Davis, whose history of maladies has followed him since the early parts of his career despite relative healthiness over the past three seasons, was feared to require surgery, which would have pushed his timetable for recovery to more than one month.
The Lakers have already been without Kyle Kuzma this preseason due to a foot injury. A bigger blow to Davis could have severely impacted the team in the early goings of the season.
The Lakers have not announced yet when Davis will return to the court due to the team skipping practices as they readjust after flying back from China. According to multiple reports, he and LeBron James will miss the Lakers’ preseason game on Monday.
The purple and gold have three more scheduled preseason tilts (in five days) before the start of the regular season against the LA Clippers on October 22nd.
