Lakers shut down AD for week due to ab strain

Los Angeles Lakers big man Anthony Davis will be out for at least a week after being diagnosed with an abdominal muscle strain, the team announced Wednesday.

Davis exited during the first quarter of Tuesday’s 118-104 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers due to the injury and did not return.

The Lakers said Davis underwent an MRI on Wednesday, will return to Los Angeles and is set to be reevaluated in approximately one week. That will rule him out for the remaining three games of the Lakers’ road trip against the Washington Wizards, New York Knicks and LA Clippers.

“When our best player goes out, it’s always challenging,” LeBron James said after Tuesday’s game. “If he’s out from the beginning, then we have a game plan set. We know what to expect, we know what our lineup is going to be. But when AD or any one of our guys go down throughout the course of a game, it’s just tough.”

Dorian Finney-Smith started the second half in Davis’ spot against the 76ers and finished with three points and three rebounds in 19 minutes.

Davis had been on a tear entering Tuesday, averaging 32.8 points on 58.2% shooting, 15 rebounds and 2.5 blocks during the Lakers’ four-game winning streak. He finished with four points on 2-of-3 shooting, two rebounds and one steal against Philadelphia.