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YAY ALERT: MRI on Anthony Davis’ Groin Injury Negative, New Orleans Pelicans Consider Him Day-to-Day

admin December 4, 2017 Blogs No Comments

Anthony Davis

At long last, we have some good news on the NBA’s injury front.

Okay, actually, we have kind-of, sort-of good news. Real good news would include the abolition of injuries altogether. But following this season’s spate of onset absences and serious setbacks from marquee names, we’ll take what we can get—especially as it pertains to a top-10 player like Anthony Davis.

Davis injured his groin during the New Orleans Pelicans’ Friday night loss to the Utah Jazz. It appeared to be a non-contact abrasion upon second glance, so when he didn’t return, the NBA sphere at large was predictably troubled.

Here’s a clip of the injury:

Anthony Davis' non-contact injury… pic.twitter.com/zbDl7t9v3W

— Dan Favale (@danfavale) December 2, 2017

Davis proceeded to miss the team’s Sunday night tilt with the Portland Trail Blazers (which the Pelicans won), further driving suspicion something sinister was in store for the injury-prone star. But sources have told ESPN.com’s Adrian Wojnarowski nothing of the sort is in play, and that Davis is merely day-to-day:

MRI results negative on New Orleans Pelicans All-Star Anthony Davis’ injured groin, and timetable on his return will be day-to-day for near future, league sources tell ESPN.

It’s okay; you can say it: Phew.

The Pelicans have been one of the NBA’s more pleasant surprises this year. They’re not juggernauts by any stretch, but they’re on track to secure a playoff berth, and their Horns-heavy, dual-big offense is ninth in points scored per 100 possessions. Many had them penciled out of the Western Conference’s brutal playoff picture before the season started, so this qualifies as a major victory.

Losing Davis would have torpedoed their postseason stock, though. DeMarcus Cousins has showed he can carry the team at times, but entering their win over the Blazers, the Pelicans were a demonstrative negative when he played without Davis, according to NBA.com. And conversely, they registered as a net plus in the time Davis spent playing without Cousins.

So if you didn’t previously understand how integral Davis was to the Pelicans’ survival, even with Cousins in the fold, you should now.