The Los Angeles Lakers have done an admirable job of keeping things afloat without superstar LeBron James. With LeBron dealing with a foot injury, Anthony Davis and D’Angelo Russell have led the way as the team pushes for a playoff spot.
But the question still remains when exactly James will be back on the court. The Lakers star recently did his first on-court work since being sidelined and all signs point to rehab and treatment going as planned for LeBron. That foot is set to be re-evaluated next week, but it doesn’t sound as if he will be suiting back up anytime soon.
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst on the latest episode of Brian Windhorst and the Hoop Collective, James is not close to returning and his upcoming re-evaluation is not a sign that he will be back on the court:
“LeBron is not close to returning, from what I am told,” Windhorst said. “I know that everybody said the three weeks but I think it was very clear three weeks is when he’s going to get an official re-evaluation. It didn’t mean he’s coming back in three weeks. I know that LeBron has played through injuries in the past, I’m not 100 percent sure this is an injury you can play through.”
Recent reports have suggested that LeBron will need the majority of the regular season to rehab and be ready to suit up again and this falls in line with that. This foot injury is not something that is simply about pain management and pushing through it could worsen the injury, so the Lakers will need to be very cautious about his return.
The Lakers are much better equipped to handle James’ absence as these last couple of weeks have shown. Davis and Russell have both put forth some outstanding performances while the reserves led by Dennis Schroder and Austin Reaves have given a huge boost to the team overall.
But any shot of the Lakers making a big playoff run is contingent on James being on the court at at least close to full strength. As it stands, the Lakers will have to continue to make this run without their leader and hopefully by the time he returns, the team will be in a great position to make an impact in a wide-open Western Conference.
Lakers’ LeBron James ‘turning over every stone’ to return as quick as possible
One thing that is for certain is that LeBron James is doing everything in his power to get back on the floor. LeBron knows how important these games are for the Lakers and if he could be on the court, he would be.
Recent reports confirm this as LeBron is ‘turning over every stone’ as far as treatment and rehab goes. When James is able to suit up there is no doubt that he will back in uniform looking to lead the Lakers in their quest to run through the West.
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