Update: Both Anthony Davis and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are listed as questionable for Sunday’s game four. Davis is on the injury report with a knee injury, while KCP is listed with a quad issue. Both players seem to be determined to play.
Original Story Follows:
The Los Angeles Lakers took a 2-1 series lead on Thursday night, beating the Phoenix Suns 109-95 behind a dominant 3rd quarter. Anthony Davis was a huge reason for the win, scoring 34 points while also accumulating 11 rebounds. Despite the encouraging play from Davis and the Lakers, there was some pessimism to be had after the game as Davis came down awkwardly on his knee at one point of the game. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope also had a minor collision with Devin Booker while he was fighting around a pick-and-roll, causing him to leave the game while gingerly limping back to the locker room.
Both players indicated after the game that they had hyperextended their knees (KCP reported by Lakers Nation while Davis’ was reported below by Dave McMenamin/ESPN), with KCP reportedly receiving an MRI today to determine if there’s any unforeseen severity (per Dave McMenamin/ESPN). Anthony Davis played the rest of the game following his injury, and said after that he will get it checked out today.
Anthony Davis said that he hyperextended his left knee but was able to finish by keeping it warm and riding the adrenaline. He says he will get it checked out tomorrow and is glad that there are two days off heading into Sunday’s Game 4.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) May 28, 2021
Frank Vogel was asked about Davis’ injury, with Kyle Goon of the OC Register reporting that Vogel said the Lakers’ medical staff convened following the injury to discuss whether or not Anthony Davis could continue. The injury can be seen below.
Watch Anthony Davis' left leg https://t.co/HMY4wB3H1d
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) May 28, 2021
Vogel stated that the Lakers needed Davis in the second half to secure the win, and with how Davis performed it’d be hard to argue with Vogel. Davis was especially dominant in the 3rd quarter (Lakers outscored Suns 33-23) with 18 points and five rebounds (two offensive) on 6/11 FG shooting (6/8 free throws). The Lakers’ size with Davis, Andre Drummond, and LeBron James is really starting to overwhelm the Suns, and it’s Davis being assertive and leading the charge after letting his team down in Game 1 with a sub-par performance.
We’ll have to see what updates come out from KCP’s MRI, but with no report of an MRI for Davis paired with the fact that he finished the game, you’d expect him to be ready to go for Sunday’s Game 4. As always, we’ll be sure to update this story with any developments.
