The Lakers will be without star center Anthony Davis on Sunday night against Minnesota because of a calf strain, coach Frank Vogel said.
Speaking after the team’s shootaround Sunday, Vogel said the team wanted to be careful with Davis’ right calf, which he injured in the season opener against the Clippers and aggravated in the third quarter against Dallas on Christmas.
“Well, we just want to be responsible with it,” Vogel said. “…We want to take advantage of our depth and be intelligent with this injury.”
Davis was able to stay in the game in the Lakers’ win against the Mavericks.
Sunday’s game with Minnesota is the start of the Lakers’ first back-to-back of the season, and while the team has said it will be cognizant of the load it’s asking its stars to carry, there’s no set-in-stone plan for how the team will handle consecutive games.
Vogel said that the plan, as of now, is for LeBron James to play Sunday and Monday nights.
The Lakers host Portland on Monday night at Staples Center in the second half of the back-to-back. Minnesota, Sunday’s opponent, played Saturday night in Utah.
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