Lakers Say Anthony Davis Has Stress Injury, Out Indefinitely
Nearly a week after Anthony Davis left suffered a right foot injury, the Lakers have issued an official update on Davis’ status, announcing on Friday that he has a stress injury in his foot and has been ruled out indefinitely (Twitter link).
According to the club, the diagnosis was reached after “extensive consultation with Lakers team physicians and outside specialists.” Further updates will be provided when appropriate, the Lakers added in their statement.
Although we waited several days for official word from the Lakers, their announcement doesn’t provide much additional clarity on Davis’ injury or his potential recovery timeline. As Jeff Stotts of In Street Clothes tweets, a “stress injury” could mean a stress reaction or a stress fracture, and it’s difficult to assess the severity of the ailment without knowing which bone is affected.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reported five days ago that Davis was expected to be sidelined for at least a month, but it sounds like the big man and the Lakers aren’t prepared to go that far. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), the pain in Davis’ foot has subsided in recent days and the plan is to rest it for another seven-to-10 days before having it reevaluated to see if he can return to the court.
The hope is that Davis will be able to avoid undergoing a procedure on his injured foot, Wojnarowski adds.
With Davis on the shelf, Thomas Bryant has been promoted to the Lakers’ starting five and has played well, averaging 17.5 PPG and 7.8 RPG on .622/.636/.583 shooting in his last four games (28.5 MPG). However, Los Angeles’ defense has struggled without Davis manning the middle, giving up between 117 and 134 points in the three games since his injury. The Lakers’ defensive rating during that time ranks 29th in the NBA.
Pacers, Myles Turner Discussing Possible Extension
The Pacers and center Myles Turner have opened up discussions about a possible contract extension, league sources with knowledge of the situation tell Shams Charania of The Athletic. Those talks are believed to be in the initial stages, Charania adds.
Turner is earning $18MM in the final year of his current contract and will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer if he doesn’t sign a new deal before then.
With Domantas Sabonis no longer sharing minutes at the five in Indiana, Turner is enjoying the best season of his eight-year NBA career, averaging a career-high 16.7 points in his first 26 games (29.5 MPG). His 7.8 rebounds per game are also a career high, as are his .541 FG% and .417 3PT%. The 26-year-old has provided his usual rim protection too, blocking 2.1 shots per night.
As we explained last month, the Pacers would be limited to giving Turner a 20% starting raise (to $21.6MM) if they offered a standard contract extension. Such an offer would max out at about $97MM over four years.
However, because they’re still well below the salary cap – not to mention the salary floor – the Pacers could complete a renegotiation-and-extension, which would allow them to more than double Turner’s $18MM salary this season (to his maximum of about $37MM) and would give them the flexibility to discuss a much wider range of salary numbers in future years (including a decrease of up to 40% from his renegotiated salary).
According to Charania, Pacers officials have indeed discussed the renegotiation-and-extension framework with Turner’s agent, Austin Brown.
Although Charania says that there’s a March 1 deadline for the two sides to reach an extension, Turner will technically remain eligible to sign a new deal all the way up until June 30. However, teams aren’t permitted to renegotiate players’ current-year salaries after the last day in February. If Turner and his camp are viewing the start of March as the deadline to work something out, that presumably means they won’t entertain a new deal without a 2022/23 salary bump.
Even as they explore an extension for Turner, the Pacers are expected to keep all their options open, including a possible trade before the February 9 deadline. The Lakers and Raptors are among the teams that have shown interest in the big man in recent months, league sources tell Charania.
Turner and Buddy Hield – who has also drawn interest from rival teams this season, per Charania – are considered Indiana’s most obvious veteran trade candidates, though there’s no guarantee that either will go anywhere this season.
Suns Notes: Crowder, Booker, Okogie, Ishbia
A rival general manager who spoke to Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com doesn’t think that Suns forward Jae Crowder has helped himself by sitting out the season as he waits to be traded.
“He just didn’t show up,” the GM said. “He said he’s not playing unless he gets a contract extension that he wants. I think a lot of teams are turned off by that in and of itself. Like, ‘What? You don’t want to play for one of the best teams in the NBA and prove that you’re worth it so you can get a contract next year? Like, you’re not that good, bro. What are you doing?’ It’s a weird dynamic. It’s one thing if Kevin Durant‘s holding out because he’s not getting paid enough, but Jae Crowder? Seriously?
“I just don’t understand this, and I’m not alone. … He just had to play the year and show that he’s a great leader and has a great attitude.”
Crowder has been on the trade block for at least the last three months and the Suns have yet to find a deal they like. That doesn’t surprise Bulpett’s source — the GM suggested that the trade market for the 32-year-old forward hasn’t been particularly hot.
“Phoenix is leaking all sorts of things out there periodically, but I think it’s mostly just to try to stir up some interest,” he said.
Here’s more on the Suns:
- The Grizzlies may be getting some reinforcements when they visit Phoenix on Friday night, but the Suns will once again be without their leading scorer. Devin Booker has been ruled out for a third consecutive game due to groin soreness, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic.
- Cameron Payne (right foot strain) will also be unavailable on Friday, but one or both of Jock Landale (concussion protocol) and Josh Okogie (right hip soreness) could return. They’re both listed as questionable. Okogie told reporters today that he feels good, but will wait until closer to tip-off to make a final decision (Twitter link via Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports).
- Jeremy Cluff of The Arizona Republic takes a look at what fans should know about Mat Ishbia, who is poised to assume control of the Suns and become the NBA’s youngest team owner at age 42. Meanwhile, Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic observes that simply not being Robert Sarver will work in Ishbia’s favor as he makes a first impression on Suns fans. Even before the investigation into his workplace misconduct and his subsequent suspension, Sarver wasn’t especially popular among fans in Phoenix due in part to his reputation for thriftiness.
Wendell Carter, Gary Harris Set To Return For Magic
The Magic, riding a hot streak, got some more good news on December 23, according to Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel, who reports that center Wendell Carter Jr. and swingman Gary Harris will both be available on Friday vs. San Antonio following lengthy injury absences.
Carter has missed Orlando’s last 17 games due to a strained right plantar fascia, having last played on November 18. Harris, meanwhile, has been out since November 30. His 11-game absence was the result of a strained right hamstring.
Carter had averaged a career-high 16.6 points per game to go along with 9.1 RPG and 3.3 APG in his first 15 appearances (all starts) this season, while Harris put up 10.3 PPG on .479/.435/1.000 shooting in six games (three starts). Carter was averaging nearly 33 minutes per game, while Harris was logging almost 26 minutes per night, so both players figure to reclaim key roles now that they’re healthy, though they’ll be on minutes restrictions for the time being.
Still, the Magic will want to be careful not to meddle too much with what has been working for them lately. After losing 20 of their first 25 games, the Magic have won seven of eight and are suddenly just two games out of the play-in picture in the Eastern Conference standings.
Friday’s game should be the first time this season that Orlando doesn’t have at least four players sidelined due to injuries, according to Price.
Jonathan Isaac (left knee), Chuma Okeke (left knee), and Jalen Suggs (right ankle) have been ruled out for the game, though Isaac still appears to be making progress toward his long-awaited return. He went through shootaround today and head coach Jamahl Mosley said Isaac is cleared to practice with the Magic when they do hold practices (Twitter link via Price).
Poll: Should NBA Adopt Elam Ending For Overtime?
The G League revamped its overtime format this season, as we detailed earlier in the week, replacing a traditional two-minute overtime period with a seven-point target score. Instead of simply tacking on another two minutes to the clock, the G League turns the clock off entirely once overtime begins, with the first team to score seven points winning the game.
ESPN’s Kevin Pelton (Insider link) suggested earlier this week that it’s a tweak we could eventually see make its way to the NBA, and John Hollinger of The Athletic wrote today about that possibility too. According to Hollinger, the rule change has received “generally positive” reviews and NBAGL staffers seem to love it.
The target score – also known as the “Elam Ending” in honor of creator Nick Elam – has been used in the fourth quarter of the NBA All-Star Game in recent years. However, as Pelton observes, it’s a better fit in overtime, since the two teams start the period tied — that simplifies the target score, since both clubs need to score the same amount of points, instead of one team needing, say, 40 points, while the other team needs 27.
Since the NBA’s overtime period runs for five minutes instead of just two minutes like in the G League, an overtime target score at the NBA level would likely have to be higher than seven points — Pelton believes that something around 11 might work.
There would be some drawbacks if the NBA instituted such a change. We’d lose the drama of double- or triple-overtime games, and there would be no possibility of a game ending on a buzzer beater.
However, coaches and front offices may welcome the elimination of those double- or triple-overtime contests, which can result in top players playing huge minutes. With teams more concerned than ever about managing players’ workloads, they could favor the relative certainty of the target-score ending.
As for the lost buzzer beaters, it’s worth noting that the Elam Ending requires every game to end on a made shot, so if the score stays tight throughout overtime, there should still be plenty of excitement in end-game scenarios.
There would likely still be plenty of anticlimactic endings, with games ending via a free throw or by one team pouring in 11 points before the other team has scored more than a basket or two. But that’s an issue with the current overtime format as well.
We want to know what you think. Our poll below simply asks whether or not the NBA should adopt the Elam Ending for overtime, but if you have suggestions for potential variations (perhaps a standard five-minute overtime period followed by a target score in double overtime?), we want to hear them.
Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!
Should the NBA adopt a target score (Elam Ending) for overtime?
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No 58% (473)
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Yes 42% (340)
Total votes: 813
Sixers Notes: Melton, Maxey, Tucker, Harden
When the Sixers gave up a first-round pick and Danny Green‘s expiring contract for De’Anthony Melton, they knew they were getting a strong defender who could make a three-point shot, but the former Grizzlies guard has given them “more connective tissue in the half court” than they might have expected, writes ESPN’s Zach Lowe (Insider link).
Melton’s play-making and screening ability has been valuable for Philadelphia, according to Lowe, who notes that the team has scored an average of 1.2 points when a Melton screen leads directly to a shot. That’s 17th among 244 players who have set 50 such screens, Lowe writes, citing Second Spectrum. The 24-year-old has also handed out a career-best 3.3 assists per game.
Melton’s presence has helped the 76ers withstand injury absences for James Harden and Tyrese Maxey in the early part of the 2022/23 season. Despite not opening the season as part of Philadelphia’s starting five, Melton has made 20 starts in 27 appearances so far.
Here’s more on the Sixers:
- Given how well the 76ers have played with Melton in the starting lineup (they have a 13-7 record in those games), there has been some speculation about the possibility of bringing Maxey off the bench as the leader of the second unit when he returns from his foot injury. Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com considers the case for making such a move, but ultimately concludes that it’s probably not in the team’s best interest.
- In his latest mailbag for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Keith Pompey also argues against making Maxey the sixth man once he’s healthy. Pompey’s mailbag explores several other topics, including whether the Sixers’ three-year, $33MM+ investment in P.J. Tucker will turn out as poorly as the four-year, $109MM deal they gave Al Horford in 2019 — given the relative size of the two deals, Pompey believes there’s no comparison between the two, especially since Horford was never a good fit, while Tucker is beginning to show overall improvement in his role.
- In his first seven games back from a foot injury, Harden has averaged nearly 39 minutes per night. However, head coach Doc Rivers isn’t concerned about the former MVP’s heavy recent workload, per Noah Levick of NBC Sports Philadelphia. “I’ll guarantee you, by the end of the year, you’ll look at his numbers and they’ll look great,” Rivers said. “It’s a whole year. That’s why we can’t overdo things when guys have a three-week spike in minutes and all of a sudden we’re overreacting to that. You don’t. We’ve been low on guards, and so guys have to play minutes. And James is one of those guys that can handle minutes. But by the end of the year, his minutes will be down.”
L.A. Notes: Batum, Kennard, Westbrook, LeBron, Reaves
Veteran wing Nicolas Batum has continued to play a regular role off the bench for the Clippers this season, but he’s not taking it for granted. Before being bought out by Charlotte during the 2020 offseason, Batum had been relegated to a bench role and believed his playing days were nearing an end, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times.
“Two years ago, I didn’t think I would be in that spot today still playing major minutes, have a role for a contending team, no,” Batum said. “I was more about retirement.”
Batum quickly caught on with the Clippers in 2020 once he became a free agent and has since signed two new contracts with the team, including a two-year, $22.6MM deal this past summer. Now 34 years old, he doesn’t envision retiring anytime soon.
“After what happened to me in Charlotte I promised myself, especially with the French national team, I’m like … ‘I’m going to do everything so I will retire the way I want,'” Batum said. “That’s the attitude I have now. Going to keep working and I mean, they’re going to have to kick me out. Good luck with that.”
Here are a few more notes on the NBA’s two Los Angeles-based teams:
- Clippers sharpshooter Luke Kennard is leading the NBA with a career-best .489 3PT%, but is only tied for 106th in the league in three-point makes, since he attempts just 4.2 per game. Janis Carr of The Southern California News Group explores whether Kennard should be more aggressive in seeking out his shot.
- Lakers guard Russell Westbrook, who has missed the team’s last two games due to left foot soreness, is listed as probable to return on Friday vs. Charlotte, tweets Marc Stein. LeBron James, who sat out Monday’s game in Phoenix with left ankle soreness and returned on Wednesday in Sacramento, has also been designated as probable.
- Like Westbook, Lakers guard Austin Reaves (right ankle sprain) has been sidelined for the last two games, but he also has a chance to return on Friday. He has been listed as questionable, per Stein.
- Although Thomas Bryant has played well at center in Anthony Davis‘ stead, the Lakers have no adequate substitute on defense for their injured star, writes Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group. Since Davis went down last week with a foot injury, the club has the second-worst defensive rating in the NBA (124.5). “We’re already a team without a lot of length and not a lot of size,” James said. “And you lose a 6-11 guy with a 7-6 wingspan, 7-7 wingspan, I mean, it’s self-explanatory, so it’s not like it’s rocket science.”
Southeast Notes: Young, McMillan, Collins, Wright, Beal, Oladipo
Hawks guard Trae Young and head coach Nate McMillan both downplayed an alleged confrontation that occurred earlier this month, but there has been chatter that their relationship has gotten worse since then, according to Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com, who said one league executive referred to the situation in Atlanta as “toxic.”
“When they win, everybody’s happy for a minute,” one source told Bulpett. “But when they lose, it gets messy. Instead of trying to get it figured out, there’s a lot of blame being thrown around.”
According to Bulpett, one opposing coach said that Young and McMillan don’t like each other, and suggested that “other players have issues with Trae” as well.
“There were teams that questioned whether he’d ever be this good because of his size when he was coming out,” a front office source said of Young. “So it’s good to have that kind of fight in you. But at some point, you’d hope he’d realize the effect he can have on his team, both positive and negative. Sometimes you have to take a step back and maybe take a hit to make the whole thing work.”
Meanwhile, although John Collins‘ name has once again come up in trade rumors, sources who spoke to Bulpett pointed to the big man’s contract as a potential roadblock as the Hawks seek a trade partner. He’s still owed $78.5MM across three seasons after this one.
“He’s not a bad player. He’s actually a good player,” a source told Bulpett. “The problem is he’s not worth 23-and-a-half million. There are places he could go where he’d really be helping a team and really be happy, but right now that contract is in the way. We’ll see if anyone’s going to bite or if Atlanta’s going to make it worth another team’s while.”
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- Asked on Tuesday if there’s a chance Delon Wright will return to action for the Wizards on Thursday, head coach Wes Unseld Jr. responded, “I hope so,” tweets Josh Robbins of The Athletic. Wright has been on the shelf for nearly two months, but finally seems on the verge of being reactivated.
- In a story for The Athletic, Robbins and Jovan Buha explore whether it’s realistic to think the Wizards and Lakers could work out a trade that sends Bradley Beal to Los Angeles for Russell Westbrook and draft picks. Robbins is skeptical, but points out that Beal’s no-trade clause will make it challenging for the Wizards to maximize the guard’s value if he ever wants to be dealt, since he could veto deals to unwanted destinations.
- With several Heat regulars unavailable, Victor Oladipo made his first start of the year and played a season-high 34 minutes in Tuesday’s loss to Chicago. As Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel relays, head coach Erik Spoelstra made it clear after the game that he doesn’t intend to lean that heavily on Oladipo often as he continues to work his way back to 100%. “I wouldn’t have done this with Vic if it wasn’t clearly communicated with him and with the training staff and if we didn’t have two days after the last game, two days before the next game,” Spoelstra said.
Knicks Lose 2025 Second-Round Pick For Free Agency Gun Jumping
The Knicks will lose their own second-round pick in the 2025 draft as a penalty for violating NBA rules governing free agency, the league announced today (via Twitter).
“This outcome reflected a finding, following an investigation, that the Knicks engaged in free agency discussions involving Jalen Brunson prior to the date when such discussions were permitted,” the NBA said in its statement, adding that the team “fully cooperated” with the investigation.
The Knicks were one of two teams investigated this year for possible free agency gun jumping after they signed Brunson to a four-year, $104MM contract in July. Days before free agency opened, word began to trickle out that Brunson was “widely anticipated” to sign with New York for a four-year deal exceeding $100MM, with multiple reports suggesting that the Mavericks had believed for weeks that the point guard was bound for the Knicks.
It’s not unusual for free agents’ presumed destinations to leak before the negotiating period officially begins on June 30. However, it raises eyebrows in the league office when the details of a rival team’s offer to a free agent leaks days in advance and there’s a publicly reported widespread belief that the player will join that team.
Brunson’s case was complicated further by the fact that he had personal relationships with so many people within the Knicks’ organization. President of basketball operations Leon Rose represented Brunson as a player agent before he joined New York’s front office, and his son Sam Rose is one of Brunson’s reps at CAA. Rick Brunson, Jalen’s father, was hired by the Knicks as an assistant coach several weeks before free agency began.
According to Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter link), besides investigating the Jalen Brunson signing, the league also looked into the hiring of Rick Brunson and the signing of another CAA client, Isaiah Hartenstein. However, the league only found an issue with the Jalen signing.
The Sixers faced a similar investigation due to their free agency moves, including a contract agreement with P.J. Tucker that leaked early. Philadelphia was docked a pair of second-round picks for early contact with Tucker and Danuel House.
A year ago, the Heat and Bulls each forfeited second-round picks for free agency gun jumping related to Kyle Lowry and Lonzo Ball, so the NBA has established a pattern of penalizing a second-rounder for each instance of early free agency contact.
The Knicks have traded away their own 2023 and 2024 second-round picks, so the 2025 pick was their earliest available second-rounder. The team had acquired extra second-rounders in ’24 and ’25, but it appears the NBA decided to rescind New York’s own pick to simplify matters.
Community Shootaround: Best Team In The West
After defeating Memphis on Tuesday, the Nuggets are the Western Conference leaders, becoming the latest club to take its turn atop the West’s standings. The Nuggets, who also briefly held the No. 1 seed for a couple days in mid-November, are the fourth team to lead the West so far in December, as the conference’s would-be contenders play musical chairs with the top seeds.
Since the regular season began in October, eight different teams have held the No. 1 spot in the West, with five of those clubs spending at least six days atop the conference. Of those teams, only one has spent more than 10 days holding the top seed — the Suns have led the West for 23 days so far this season.
While the Suns look like a worthy contender to finish the season as the West’s best team, they’ve been in a tailspin in the last couple weeks, losing six of their last nine games. The absences of Cameron Johnson (due to injury) and Jae Crowder (away from the team) have hurt a club that has also dealt with injuries to starting guards Chris Paul and Devin Booker in recent weeks.
The Nuggets, the current West leader, have a strong starting group led by two-time MVP Nikola Jokic and own the conference’s second-best offense (behind Phoenix), but they still need to get more from their bench and improve their defense, which ranks 24th in the NBA.
The Trail Blazers have led the conference for 10 days so far this season, but have had some rough patches and currently hold the No. 7 seed, albeit just 2.5 games behind Denver. Like the Nuggets, they’ve had some defensive lapses and are focused on improving a unit that ranks 23rd in the league.
The Grizzlies and Jazz have each been atop the West for nine days, though they’ve appeared headed in opposite directions as of late. Even after losing their last two games, the Grizzlies have won nine of their last 12, while Utah has dropped 10 of 16 since opening the season with a 12-6 record. The Jazz have proven to be surprisingly resilient for a club viewed as a tanker entering the season, but it’s probably safe to assume the Grizzlies will be the better team the rest of the way.
The Pelicans held the West’s top seed for six days earlier this month and remain very much in the hunt for that spot, just one game behind the Nuggets. Former No. 1 pick Zion Williamson has been firing on all cylinders in the last few weeks and we still haven’t seen New Orleans at full strength — Brandon Ingram has been sidelined since November 25 and will add another dimension to the team’s offense once he’s ready to return from his toe injury.
The Warriors (three days) and Clippers (one day) technically held the No. 1 spot in the West briefly during the early part of the season and were considered two of the best bets to make the NBA Finals entering the fall. Injuries have disrupted their momentum so far, but as long as they secure playoff berths and get healthy by the spring, no one will want to face them in the postseason.
Of the remaining seven Western teams who haven’t led the conference at all this season, the Kings (16-13), Timberwolves (16-15), Mavericks (15-16), and Lakers (13-17) are probably the only legitimate threats to make the postseason. It may be be a long shot for a Sacramento squad lacking in playoff experience or a Lakers club lacking in depth to make much noise this season, but Minnesota and Dallas have the star power necessary to make a second-half push.
We want to know what you think. In what appears to be a wide open Western Conference field, which team do you think will finish the regular season as the No. 1 seed? Do you expect the same team to represent the conference in the NBA Finals, or do you like another club to win the West in the postseason?
Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your two cents!