NBA 2021 Los Angeles will have to try to survive several games without James and Anthony Davis
AP
Pgat Riley said several decades ago repeating is even harder to win the first title. It refers more to the egos of the players, but also because some fortune is required in regard to injuries to get to have the Larry O’Brien trophy.
Health the Lakers smiled on him last season, As in the Playoffs their rivals did not fully count Damian Lillard, Russell Westbrook, Jamal Murray, Bam Adebayo, Goran Dragic and Jimmy Butler. Now it’s the other side of the coin.
Anthony Davis has not played since February 14 and his return will be until mid-April. LeBron managed to keep the boat afloat, suffering to adjust at the start (they lost 4 of the first 5), but they had mark of 7-6 before Saturday’s game, in which ‘The King’ falls.
James suffered an ankle sprain in the first quarter that left him out indefinitely. He could well return more or less when ‘La Cella’ also rejoins, although it is also true that James hardly wastes time due to injuries. S, the same LEbrón admitted that it is the biggest pain he had felt in his career, but it is also true that he has suffered 8 ankle sprains and only lost three games, although ESPN public that similar injuries usually lead to 10 recovery matches; basically a month.
There is a possibility that the Lakers are without their two maximum figures for a similar time and this will change the season. The first impact of this lesion is that lthe race for the postseason in the West will be altered. After losing to Atlanta, the Lakers are third with 28-14, 2.5 games behind Utah Jazz, but just three losses less than the conference’s seventh, the Spurs.
The itinerary from now until the end of March includes games with the Lakers, Pelicans, Cavs, Magic and Bucks, and in the first 20 days of April they will have to face Clippers, Heat, Nets, Celtics and Jazz twice. It will be a historic collapse for the Lakers to miss the postseason, but they may fall to the bottom of the box and, even with stadiums without full capacity, would have to win three series without the local to reach the Finals alone, With a more complicated path and not with favorable duels to be the first sown.
The other point that is affected is the race for the MVP. LeBron was the favorite after Davis’ injury and with Joel Embiid out. But few have won the MVP losing more than 10 games. This could open the door for someone else to sneak in. Nikola Jokic and his almost triple-double could be the beneficiary, especially if his Nuggets manage to beat the Lakers at the table (today they are 2.5 games), something not so crazy to think without James on the team, or if the Nets manage to rise to the highest in the East with James Harden to order.