Spurs vs. Lakers Wednesday NBA injury report, odds: Anthony Davis set to return from injury, Rui Hachimura to debut for Los Angeles

It had been reported that Los Angeles Lakers All-Star Anthony Davis was likely going to return from his foot injury this week but probably not until Saturday night's national TV game at Boston to kick off a five-game road trip. Instead, Davis is expected to suit up Wednesday night – as is trade acquisition Rui Hachimura -- against the visiting San Antonio Spurs, who are +6 at Caesars Sportsbook.

According to ESPN, Davis will be on a 20- to 24-minute restriction but is back in only 5 1/2 weeks from a fractured bone spur and stress reaction in his right foot. Some original projections said that Davis could miss 8-10 weeks. The 2012 No. 1 overall pick averaged 27.4 points per game prior to the injury, while also posting career bests in rebounds (12.1 per game) and field-goal percentage (59.4%), along with averaging 2.1 blocks.

The Lakers were 10-10 in Davis' absence after falling to the LA Clippers 133-115 on Tuesday and are 11-12 overall without him this season. He makes a massive defensive difference -- L.A.'s opponents shoot 47.8% from the field and score 119.4 PPG when Davis isn't playing, compared to 114.9 PPG and a 44.0 shooting percentage with him. The Clippers scored 77 first-half points Tuesday in the blowout win and finished at 60% overall from the field.

It makes some sense to get Davis minutes tonight ahead of a tough trip. The Lakers (22-26) need all the wins they can get, currently sitting 13th in the Western Conference. They're 1.5 games out of the final play-in tournament spot.

As for Hachimura, he was acquired Monday from Washington for guard Kendrick Nunn and three second-round picks. The former Gonzaga star is considered a "3-and-D" player who mostly had fallen out of favor with the Wizards and is set for restricted free agency this summer. Hachimura is averaging 13.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this season and brings needed size at 6-foot-8. LA is a very small team even when Davis is healthy.

LeBron James continued his amazing stretch of play with 46 points in Tuesday's loss to the Clippers, becoming the first player to ever score at least 40 against every NBA team. James is set over/under 30.5 tonight as he closes in on breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's all-time scoring mark (LeBron is 177 points from tying). No props yet on Davis. 

San Antonio has lost 15 of 20 and is in full tank mode. The Spurs are the NBA's worst defensive team, allowing a whopping 122.0 PPG. San Antonio surrendered 147 on Monday in a blowout loss at Portland. Thus, the total tonight is a huge 243.5 points. The Spurs have lost all three meetings to the Lakers this season, but all of those games were played in November.

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