Man, I Just Cannot Stop Laughing At Anthony Davis Getting a Concussion

I try to avoid jumping on a soapbox to shake my head in disappointment when sports people say dumb sports shit but this article is more about my growing frustration towards the NBA media and how little they care about the games they watch and the players they cover. This week, everyone dogpiled on Anthony Davis because he had to leave Game 5 following an elbow to his temple by Kevon Looney.

Anthony Davis took an elbow to the face by Kevon Looney and headed to the Lakers bench 😮pic.twitter.com/DCSyQQmflb

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 11, 2023

AD will NOT return after getting hit in the face by Kevon Looney. pic.twitter.com/IIAMDR45GP

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 11, 2023

The Lakers lost 106-121. They really could’ve used Davis down the stretch but he was placed in concussion protocol allowing Draymond Green to turn into prime Magic Johnson out of nowhere.

Unfortunately, due to Davis frequently being sidelined with injuries and this specific head contact not looking particularly devastating, AD became the butt of every joke across every popular sports show.

Here’s the TNT crew laughing uncontrollably at the idea of Davis needing to leave in a wheelchair:

Shaq and Charles Barkley can’t stop laughing at Anthony Davis for leaving game in a wheel chair with a head injury pic.twitter.com/yQhWmcbxCE

— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) May 11, 2023

And if you wanted to excuse the TNT guys for not having enough information and reacting in real-time, sure. Here’s Stephen A. Smith the next morning dunking on AD because, according to Stephen A, it is impossible to injure your head playing basketball. Ok.

Stephen A Smith on Anthony Davis injury 😩😩😩😩 pic.twitter.com/AQdzpXAjpb

— Shannonnn sharpes Burner (PARODY Account) (@shannonsharpeee) May 11, 2023

Just a reminder that it’s currently 2023 and the most-watched sports programs are laughing hysterically at a guy who was hit in the head and couldn’t walk. We have so much information on concussions and how serious and potentially life-altering they are, and Shaquille O’Neal and Stephen A. Smith think Davis is a little bitch for not playing through the force of his brain smashing into his skull.

I think most of these shows’ analysis comes down to ‘who wants it more’ and ‘who has that dog in them’ because the hosts of these shows don’t have the language or time within these quick 7-minute blocks to fully articulate their points.

So when they see AD leave games with what looks like minimal physical contact, they attribute Davis’s constant injuries to his lack of desire to win or whatever weird Michael Jordan propaganda they vomit up regularly.

And I don’t necessarily disagree with the idea that sometimes players exaggerate their injuries so they can have the night off. This is a job for these guys and jobs suck. Every single place I’ve ever worked has had to deal with me calling out and using all of my sick days. I have killed off every possible relative I have in order to skip out on an 8-hour shift on a warm sunny day. I absolutely understand an NBA player just not wanting to go to work—regardless of their salary.

Earlier this month, Pat Bev told us that a lot of players in the NBA don’t love basketball, including some of his former teammates:

“Most teammates I know who don’t love basketball are the really f—ing good ones — are the most skilled ones. It’s the wildest s— in the world,” Beverley said. “Preparation is different when you got so much skill. You could just show up to the game and get a m—–f—ing 30, 40. That might work against other teams who aren’t that good. But you can’t do that in the playoffs.”

I can’t help but think this quote is directly about Anthony Davis who seems to be capable of casually scoring 30 points on any given night but also has the same equal chance to score like, 11 points and disappear for long stretches of the game.

So if you fight the immediate urge to scream at Stephen A and Charles Barkley, it actually makes total sense to mock AD for leaving Game 5 early. If you are under the impression that Anthony Davis doesn’t enjoy playing the game and looks for excuses to sit out—especially when the pressure is at its greatest—then it would be hilarious to hear Davis was wheelchaired out from a tiny bump on the head.

The problem is, head injuries aren’t fucking funny. Anthony Davis once missed a week after suffering a pinky injury. That’s funny. Getting hit in the temple so hard that you can’t stand up without blacking out, I don’t really see the comedy in that—regardless of whether or not you think AD is a pussy or whatever.

Anthony Davis likes taking days off from work and his head really hurts right now. Both things can be true.

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