Anthony Davis Return Date: Lakers Star 'Making Great Progress' Says Teammate

As the Los Angeles Lakers continue to struggle with both of its superstars recovering from injuries, there appears to be some positive news regarding Anthony Davis. The All-Star center is getting closer to playing in an NBA game, something he hasn’t done in nearly two months.

Davis has been sidelined since Feb. 14 when he left the Lakers’ loss against the Denver Nuggets with a calf injury. While there’s still no target date for the 28-year-old to return, his teammates are encouraged with what they’ve seen from the big man.

“He’s making great progress,” Lakers guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope told reporters Monday. “We were just joking a little bit that he could give us like five minutes tomorrow (laughs). But we don’t know nothing about his timetable, or when he’s coming back. He didn’t participate in the practice today, but he did shoot a little bit, and he says he’s feeling good. So we’re just waiting on him and whenever he’s ready.”

The Lakers visit the Toronto Raptors Tuesday night in the third contest of a seven-game road trip. Davis is with the team, along with LeBron James. A high ankle sprain has kept James out since he last played on March 20.

On Sunday, Lakers head coach Frank Vogel said Davis remains “a ways away” from coming back and that James is out indefinitely.

Frank Vogel says LeBron James and Anthony Davis will be with the team on their road trip. Also said AD is still "a ways away" from returning and LeBron remains "out indefinitely," so no new updates there.
— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) April 4, 2021

Davis was initially ruled out for a month. Three weeks ago, sources told Yahoo Sports that Davis could miss the “next three weeks and possibly beyond.” The team is being cautious with Davis, hoping he can be 100% healthy for a playoff run.

Los Angeles has dropped to fifth in the Western Conference standings without Davis and James. The Lakers have six losses in their last nine games.

Before Davis got hurt, Los Angeles was 21-6. The Lakers have since put together a 10-13 record.

The Lakers are 2.5 games ahead of the No. 7 seed Dallas Mavericks and eight games in front of the No. 10 seed Golden State Warriors.

The 2021 NBA playoffs start May 22. The play-in tournament is scheduled to begin May 18.