Lakers: How Many Games Can L.A. Win This Next Month Sans Anthony Davis?

Your Los Angeles Lakers are in for a slog of a month after the news dropped that their best player, All-NBA center Anthony Davis, is now set to miss at least a month, possibly more, with a right foot injury.

The Lakers, hardly world beaters even with Davis at 12-16, will face off against teams with records of .500 or better 12 times over the course of the 17 games they are scheduled to play over the next month.

Raj Chipalu of Silver Screen and Roll provides a screen shot of L.A.'s ensuing short-term schedule, and it ain't pretty:

The next month. pic.twitter.com/iisaQGXggp
— Raj C. (@RajChipalu) December 18, 2022

As Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer notes, if the Lakers wind up plummeting into the draft lottery for good, the West's top-seeded team, the New Orleans Pelicans, could reap some major benefits. L.A. currently has the ninth-best lottery odds for the 2023 draft. NOLA of course has an option to swap picks with the Lakers should L.A. sport a better pick next summer. There is a world in which Los Angeles could sink far enough to give the Pellies something in the terrain of a top-five selection.

Meanwhile in the NBA: Anthony Davis is out indefinitely. Pelicans could finish near the top of the West and their chances are only increasingly they’ll also have great lottery odds. https://t.co/TwxGXzj5aN pic.twitter.com/oIbwV3D7vI
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) December 18, 2022

It may be tough to actually get a worse record than the bottom four clubs of the league, but thanks to the NBA's new flattened lottery odds, even, say, the team with the fifth-worst record has a decent chance of leapfrogging rival clubs to get the top seed next year. What if the Pelicans draft Victor Wembanyama or Scoot Henderson with L.A.'s pick? Should Davis be gone for much longer than a month, that seems incredibly, terrifyingly possible.

Adrian Wojnarowski and Dave McMenamin of ESPN report that Davis is consulting with a specialist and getting further assessments of his foot today.

With Davis gone, 6'10" traditional center Thomas Bryant seems most likely to be shifted into a starting role for the club. Wenyen Gabriel should return soon, and when he does the 6'9" power forward/center will probably be pressed into duty as Bryant's primary backup, ahead of Damian Jones.

Can 37-year-old LeBron James and 34-year-old Russell Westbrook carry more of the team's scoring burden without overextending themselves and winding up on the sidelines, too? Will the absence of Davis expedite a trade to add frontcourt reinforcements?

Assuming the team makes no moves before Davis returns, L.A. could struggle to go .500 or so over the next month. I will set my official over/under at 6.5 games and take the under. Too bad the Lakers can't just play the San Antonio Spurs 17 times or something.