PHILADELPHIA — Lakers star big man Anthony Davis will be sidelined for at least one week because of a strained abdominal muscle.
Davis left early in Tuesday’s blowout loss to the Philadelphia 76ers because of the injury.
The Lakers said on Wednesday morning that Davis underwent an MRI confirming a strained abdominal muscle, adding that he’ll return to Los Angeles on Wednesday and be re-evaluated in about one week.
After appearing to hold the left side of his body after the game’s first timeout, Davis subbed out at the 2:10 mark of the first quarter as part of the normal rotation and immediately went to the locker room for examination.
Davis, likely to be named a Western Conference reserve for the All-Star Game on Thursday, sat out for the rest of the night.
The Lakers said during the second quarter that Davis was questionable to return before ruling him out at halftime.
How and when he sustained the injury was unclear.
Davis finished with four points and two rebounds in 10 minutes, one night after recording 42 points and 23 rebounds in a victory over the Charlotte Hornets for the fifth 40-point, 20-rebound game of his career.
The Lakers led 20-17 when Davis subbed out and were outscored 101-84 in 38 minutes Davis didn’t play.
“When our best player goes out, it’s always challenging,” LeBron James said. “Especially in the game. If he’s out from the beginning, then we have a game lan set. We know what to expect, we know what our lineup is gonna be. But when AD or any one of our guys go down throughout the course of a game, it’s just tough.
“But the level of concern? I think he’ll be fine.”
The Lakers have three games over the next week:
- Thursday at Washington Wizards;
- Saturday at New York Knicks;
- Tuesday at Clippers.
They’ll host the Golden State Warriors on Feb. 6, meaning Davis won’t play again until the NBA’s trade deadline passed earlier that day.
The Lakers entered Wednesday with a 26-19 record and at the No. 5 spot in the Western Conference standings.
Davis has averaged 25.7 points, 11.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.1 blocked shots and 1.3 steals, playing in 42 of the Lakers’ first 45 games.
The Lakers will likely replace Davis with Jaxson Hayes in the starting lineup while Davis is sidelined. Two-way centers Christian Koloko and Trey Jemison could also receive more playing time.
Jarred Vanderbilt, Rui Hachimura and Dorian Finney-Smith could also be relied on more in small-ball lineups.