The Los Angeles Lakers lost to the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers last night. However, that wasn’t even the most dreadful news for the team. Just ten minutes into the game, Anthony Davis grimaced in pain. As he walked to the locker room, he kept his hand on his stomach. Later, news broke that the Brow was suffering from an abdominal strain. But could it be serious? If so, who will step up for the Lakers?

In Davis’ absence, the Lakers got punished on the glass and couldn’t identify a scoring outlet aside from James. But James Worthy isn’t worried about where the points come from. The Lakers icon named three players who will need to give emphasis to securing rebounds to avoid a defensive collapse.

“I know without him, they’re going to have to figure out how to collectively get some things done. Obviously, you can’t turn it over. You’re going to have to collectively rebound the basketball that includes some guards getting back in there and getting some of those longer rebounds. Rui (Hachimura), guys like that (Jaxson) Hayes, (Christian) Koloko as he plays they’re going to have to have a special emphasis on just rebounding the basketball and making sure that they get possession and don’t give up second possessions,” the Lakers great pointed out.

Furthermore, while discussing the Lakers’ loss, Byron Scott divulged the dangers of an abdominal sprain. Having suffered the injury in the past, the former Lakers guard revealed it could be “very concerning or not that concerning”. What decides Davis’ fate will be the next twenty-four hours and how he responds in the morning.

But even with that fine line, the injury can be sensitive. “I tell you what? You know you can just turn wrong and that thing can go from, you know, zero to 10 very quickly. I mean, it could be like you said, where this weekend he’s playing or it could be he misses this whole trip,” the three-time champion expanded.

No matter how positive the Purple and Gold might be, the wise thing would be to prepare for the worst.

How long could Anthony Davis be out?

The time Anthony Davis spends on the sidelines depends on the severity of his injury. In 2017, Davis suffered an adductor sprain when on the Pelicans. It only needed him one game to recover and get back into the lineup. On Tuesday, AD was quick to recognize his injury and appropriately stepped aside for evaluation.

However, if the injury is even slightly serious, it could mean significant missed time. According to Dr. Evan Jerries, an injury insider, the strain diagnosis itself is “concerning”.

Depending on the results of the further tests, he listed out the possible time Anthony Davis could spend on the sidelines. In case of a Grade I strain, the dominant Lakers forward will have a return timeline of 7-10 days. But in the case it’s severe and identified as a Grade II abdominal strain, the nine-time All-Star could spend 3-6 weeks recovering from the injury.

As a precaution, it doesn’t seem like the Lakers will be with Anthony Davis when they take on the Washington Wizards on Thursday. In terms of matchup, the Purple and Gold will feel they can afford to play without Davis. It also helps avoid aggravating the injury or posing the threat of flaring an ongoing issue.

Nonetheless, it all depends on just how serious the injury is. The Lakers will hope it’s a minor ailment. But if the worst is true, the season could turn sour for the Purple and Gold.