Los Angeles Lakers star Anthony Davis exited the team’s eventual loss to the Golden State Warriors early, suffering an eye injury in the first quarter that caused his eye to swell shut.

Lakers star LeBron James spoke candidly about the impact Davis’ injury had.

“When you’ve been preparing for a couple days with our prep, and you lose a key component to your team in one quarter it – we try to pick it up,” James told reporters on March 16. “But, obviously, some things that we can’t do without without AD.

“That’s having another threat always on the floor, both offensively and defensively versus a team [the Warriors] that has multiple threats. So, obviously, when you lose AD it just hurts the balance of our team. We’ve been pretty good, our coaches have been pretty good at having a certain rotation, how we work in our rotation. So now that changes a lot of things.”

The Lakers went up 29-22 in the first quarter when Davis drove for a layup. But Warriors big man Trayce Jackson-Davis inadvertently poked him in the eye.

Davis would remain in the game.

He exited with three seconds remaining in the first quarter and the Lakers staked to a 36-30 advantage. The Warriors outscored the Lakers 72-57 in the second and third quarters before the latter won the fourth quarter 28-26.

LeBron James Draws Comparison Between Stephen Curry & Anthony Davis After Lakers’ Loss

“Golden State, you tip your hat to them. They played exceptionally well,” James said. “Obviously, having Steph [Curry] back changed their dynamic. You can see the difference between when Steph was on the floor and the last couple games when he didn’t play. So it’s just tough when you have a big component, piece to the puzzle, and then you don’t have it.”

The Lakers have been fortunate that Davis has missed just four games this season. His 64 appearances (and counting) in 2023-24 are his most since the 2017-18 season.

To James’ point, the Lakers are 1-3 without Davis this season.

“Anthony Davis’ vision was impaired and his eye was swollen shut after the contact, a source familiar with the injury told ESPN,” ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported on X. “Davis will be monitored overnight and Sunday to determine his availability Monday against Atlanta.”

The Lakers have a plus-0.8 net efficiency differential when Davis is on the floor, per Cleaning The Glass, ranking in the 58th percentile.

That modest number falls to neutral when he is off the floor.

Lakers’ Path to Postseason Could Run Through Golden State

Injury woes aside, the Lakers have a relatively clear path to the postseason. They boast the ninth-easiest remaining strength of schedule in the NBA and the fourth-easiest in the Western Conference, per Tankathon.

The Warriors and Dallas Mavericks sit ahead of the Lakers in the Western Conference standings and have easier remaining slates.

They will face the Warriors again on April 9.

That contest could go a long way toward determining homecourt advantage in the first round of the Play-In Tournament that is tracking to feature the Lakers and Warriors. But there is a long way to go – and obstacles to overcome – before then.