Lakers Make Major Announcement on LeBron James as NBA Restarts
The Los Angeles Lakers announced good news on superstar forward ahead of their first game out of the All-Star break.
James has been struggling with foot and ankle injuries that cost him a regular season contest against the Indiana Pacers in the days leading up to the break and also led him to be a late scratch for the All-Star Game festivities on Sunday, Feb. 16, in San Francisco.
James’ health status for the team’s first game back, which will be played against the Charlotte Hornets in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, was in question throughout the week. However, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported a few hours before tip-off that the Lakers updated the 40-year-old James from questionable to available.
“LeBron James (left ankle) has been upgraded to available tonight, the Lakers say,”
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne reported on Wednesday that James’s injury is one Los Angeles will probably need to manage throughout the final 29 games of the regular season, as the team makes a push for a top-four seed in the Western Conference.
The Lakers enter Wednesday night’s game against the Hornets, which is the only one on the league schedule as it is a makeup date following the devastating L.A. wildfires, with a record of 32-20. That mark has L.A. sitting in fifth place in the West, just a half game back of the Houston Rockets for the No. 4 seed.
The game also holds intrigue, aswill suit up for the Lakers for just the third time since being traded from the Dallas Mavericks. He is expected to come off of a minutes restriction either Wednesday against Charlotte or the next night against the Portland Trailblazers in a road contest.
