Anthony Davis may no longer be with the Los Angeles Lakers, but he is still about to pull a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
The Dallas Mavericks star Davis spoke with reporters during media day on Monday and revealed that he is making a notable change for the rest of his NBA career. Davis said he plans to wear protective eyewear for the remainder of his playing days, per veteran NBA writer Marc Stein.
The news comes after Davis underwent surgery this offseason to repair a detached retina in his right eye. Davis added that the eyewear decision is coming as a “mandate from the doctor.”
Additionally, Davis’ eye still showed signs of reddening during his media session on Monday (despite the surgery occurring in early July).
Anthony Davis still showing signs of the eye injury… pic.twitter.com/c4C2zCQRjy
— Iztok Franko (@iztok_franko) September 29, 2025
The 10-time All-Star Davis, 32, played through multiple hits to the face last season (including one particularly troubling one in April when Davis was elbowed in the right eye by a teammate). As such, the decision to turn to goggles sounds like a wise one, especially coming off a major eye surgery.
Davis appeared in just nine games for Dallas last season after being acquired in the Luka Doncic trade and averaged 20.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game. Though there has been a bit of uncertainty over when exactly Davis will be ready to play this season after his surgery, the former No. 1 overall pick will be doing everything he can to protect himself once he is back on the floor.
