LeBron James hasn’t played for the Los Angeles Lakers in almost three weeks.
It was reported that James would be re-evaluated in three weeks and Lakers head coach Darvin Ham stated that everything has gone according to plan in his recovery.
Darvin Ham said LeBron James’ three-a-day workouts have been “intense” and “they’re going well.” Ham added he had a chance to sit with LeBron this morning at shootaround.
“Everything is going according to plan,” Ham said.
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) March 18, 2023
That is certainly some good news for the Lakers and their fans. LeBron was averaging an impressive 29.5 PPG, 8.4 RPG, and 6.9 APG, before suffering that injury against the Dallas Mavericks last month. The Lakers went 5-3 in the first eight games that he missed, but have lost two in a row since.
They certainly are a much better team post the trade deadline, but it is clear that this group needs LeBron on the court to consistently win games. While Ham gave a positive update here, it seems a return to action is still some ways away.
Brian Windhorst Says LeBron James Is Not Close To A Return
NBA insider Brian Windhorst stated on the Hoop Collective podcast that from what he’s heard, James is not close to a return. He spoke on how the initial reporting was that LeBron would have a re-evaluation in three weeks, not that he would return in that time.
Windhorst also said that he isn’t sure if this is the kind of injury that LeBron can play through, so it seems he might be out for a couple more weeks. That in turn means Anthony Davis has to carry the load and the results have been mixed so far.
He has had some incredible performances but there have been also games, like the one against the Mavericks on Friday night, where he completely blew it at the end. Davis took responsibility for that loss and while it was definitely a big blow, what matters now is how he and the rest of the team respond to it. They have got the Orlando Magic up next and the performance there will tell us a lot about how the rest of the season is going to go for the Lakers.
Source: https://fadeawayworld.net
