Report: Anthony Davis Fractures Left Hand Against Knicks; Out Indefinitely

Before the end of the first quarter in Sunday’s Knicks-Pelicans matchup in New Orleans, Anthony Davis suffered a non-displaced fracture in his left hand. He did not return to action, and the team says he will be out indefinitely until a firm schedule for his return is fixed.

UPDATE:
Here’s what Davis said after the game about the injury, via The Pelican Blog:

“I was going up for a lob, got fouled and hit my hand on the rim,” said Davis.

[…]

“I haven’t found out anything yet,” Davis said of specifics on how much time he may miss. “I hope that it’s a short-term thing (so that I can) get back on the floor.”

[…]

“I just felt pain,” Davis said of his initial reaction. “I didn’t think it would keep me out (of the game), but it did. But we got the win. I’m happy that my team battled for the whole 48 (minutes) and got that W.”

Here are a couple clips of Davis injuring the hand, by way of The Score

EARLIER:
In Davis’ second season since being selected by the Pelicans with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 Draft, he’s has been a beast, averaging 19.6 points (50.2 percent shooting), 10.6 rebounds, a league-leading 3.9 blocks, 1.7 assists and 1.7 steals in 35.1 minutes per game.

It’s a good thing, too because this New Orleans team had placed a heavy responsibility on him after trading for Jrue Holiday this offseason. Owner Tom Benson informed GM Dell Demps it was playoffs or bust this year despite a tentative rebuild started with the selection of Davis. The Pellies were already leaning heavily on their young forward to dominate the paint and help usher a return to the playoffs for the first time since dealing Chris Paul. Now there’s no telling when he’ll be back on the court and NOR is just 7-8 on the year in a stacked Western Conference.

Besides leading the league in blocks per game, at the time of his injury Davis was second in the league in PER (player efficiency rating), and in the top 10 for win shares, offensive rating and rebounds per game. Stretch power forward Ryan Anderson will take over his place in the starting lineup until he returns.