Lakers rule Davis out vs. Mavericks

Lakers power forward Anthony Davis will not play for Los Angeles on Friday when they meet the Dallas Mavericks. Davis is being held out of the game with a lower-back injury, confirmed to be a gluteus maximus contusion.

Kyle Kuzma will start instead of Davis, who had an MRI exam on Wednesday following a hard fall in Tuesday's 117-87 rout of the New York Knicks in Los Angeles. Davis took the spill while attempting to block a shot during the third quarter. Davis finished with five points, five assists, six rebounds, three steals and two blocks against the Knicks. The 26-year-old All-Star is averaging 27.1 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 2.6 blocks in 35 games in his first season with L.A.

The Western Conference-leading Lakers (30-7) have won six straight headings into back-to-back road games against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday and Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday.