Injured Anthony Davis jokes, 'It looks like (Los Angeles Lakers) don't need me'

Mark Medina | USA TODAY

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LOS ANGELES – If nothing else, Anthony Davis still maintains his sense of humor. Despite nursing frustration that he has missed the past three games because of soreness in his tail bone area, Davis couldn’t help but muse about the Lakers’ three-game winning streak without him.

“It looks like they don't need me,” Davis joked on Tuesday.

The Lakers don’t exactly feel that way. Even when informed that Davis was only joking, Lakers coach Frank Vogel appeared sensitive toward throwing digs at his star player. So Vogel stressed, “We definitely need Anthony.”

The Lakers might not get their wish just yet, though. The Lakers (33-7) have listed Davis as questionable for Wednesday’s game against the Orlando Magic (19-21) at Staples Center and will see how he performs in a pre-game warmup before deciding officially.

In his first comments since suffering the injury Jan. 7 against the New York Knicks, Davis said that he is “progressing really well” with more light shooting, ball handling and mobility drills during the Lakers’ practice on Tuesday. Although he reported feeling no soreness while talking to reporters on Tuesday, Davis said the pain emerges any time he completes any “movement” drills.” The Lakers’ medical staff also wants Davis to complete sprinting and contact drills before clearing him.

Because of those parameters, it appears more likely Davis will play when the Lakers play the Houston Rockets in Houston on Saturday.

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“I’m a lot closer than where I was three days ago,” Davis said. “I made some more progress today. When I’m able to get back to my old self and do the moves I’ve always done and be successful at it, that’s when I’ll be able to get back on the floor.”

When Davis first suffered the injury, it initially appeared he would be sidelined for a significant period of time. He took a hard fall after colliding with Knicks forward Julius Randle late in the third quarter, and remained on the ground for several minutes. After eventually walking on his own to the locker room, Davis received X-rays that turned out negative. He then had an MRI the next day that came back clean.

“It was very painful to walk,” Davis said of the initial fall. “I wanted to roll over on my back and on my side. It was tough. I didn’t want to speculate, but I was just praying that it wasn’t anything too serious. It’s very relieving.”

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