Anthony Davis exited the Los Angeles Lakers 116-102 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Tuesday four minutes into the first quarter.
For about 10 minutes of game time, there was no update on AD's condition.
Eventually, we learned that Davis was dealing with flu-like symptoms and would not return to the game. The Lakers — who were without their second-best defensive big, Wenyen Gabriel — fought admirably against a vaunted Cavs frontcourt. Yet, Cleveland pulled away in the final minutes to hand the Lakers their third loss in 11 games.
There was no reason to be concerned with the overall effort of the rejuvenated Lakers group (in fact, their resiliency against the league's best frontcourt signified a stark contrast from last year's squad). However, the status of Davis — who has become the team's best player — was the only thing worrying the Lakers and their fans.
Postgame, Darvin Ham said Davis had developed a 101-degree fever earlier in the day (a non-COVID illness). He tried to play through it before succumbing to the effects. AD scored one point in eight minutes.
The Lakers dealt with a virus early in the season, which caused LeBron James to be bedridden for a week and plagued a handful of other players.
Los Angeles is halfway through a six-game East Coast road trip. They'll face the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday, the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday, and the Detroit Pistons on Sunday. It's hard to envision AD traveling over the border with the team for the second leg of a back-t0-back. The Lakers will provide an update on his condition on Wednesday.
Davis is on a historical run. After Sunday's 55-point showing against the Washington Wizards, he became the only player besides Moses Malone in 1982 to average 35+ points and 15+ rebounds over a nine-game stretch, among many other ridiculous stats.
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