Lakers news: LeBron and Reaves availability, Bronny's G League change, more

The Los Angeles Lakers went 2-2 in NBA Cup group play, which wasn't enough to qualify for the knockout round. JJ Redick's team is watching from home instead of defending the title that they won last year with Darvin Ham, but with the team's recent downswing, that may not be such a bad thing.

The Lakers are beaten up at the moment, with injuries to key players and a worn-out look due to being one of the oldest and thinnest teams in the league. L.A. has been without multiple players, and they've fallen down the standings as a result.

Injuries and lack of depth aren't all that's plaguing this team. The Lakers haven't played much defense this year, but their offense, which carried them through the season's first 14 games, has abandoned them. L.A. is now 12th in the league in offensive efficiency after being in the top six earlier in the year, which hasn't been nearly good enough to cover for its 26th-ranked D.

Even when the Lakers don't have a game scheduled, they still give the fans plenty to talk about, and this week has been no different. Let's catch up on everything happening with the Lake Show.

When will the Lakers be getting LeBron James and Austin Reaves back?

The Lakers managed to beat the Blazers on Sunday despite being without LeBron James and Austin Reaves. This was LeBron's first missed game of the season, but it was Reaves' fifth straight contest in street clothes after he endured a nasty fall late last month against the Thunder that bruised his pelvis.

LeBron was initially expected to return against the Timberwolves on Friday, but it now appears as though the foot soreness that kept him out against the Blazers will keep him out again.

LeBron was excused from Wednesday's practice due to what JJ Redick called "personal reasons." That didn't seem like a big deal, but on Thursday ESPN's Shams Charania reported that he appeared unlikely to play on Friday in order to get more rest.

The news was a bit more positive for Reaves, who sat out one drill but was otherwise a full practice participant on Wednesday. It's unknown at this time if he'll be able to play against the Wolves, but he's considered day-to-day, which should indicate that he'll be back soon.

The Lakers have gone just 2-3 in the games that Reaves has missed. They did manage a win over the lowly Blazers without LeBron and Reaves, but that's more an indication that Portland is just not a good team. Without their two injured stars, the Lakers only have D'Angelo Russell as a playmaker to initiate the offense, and given the fact that Russell has seen his minutes reduced and had his starting spot taken from him since the start of the season, it's in the Lakers' best interests to get a healthy LeBron and Reaves back as quickly as possible.

Bronny James to now play G League road games

For a player that was drafted late in the second round, Bronny James sure has gotten a lot of attention this season. That was inevitable given who his dad is, but it hasn't necessarily been positive for the rookie.

Most scouts believed Bronny would be better served to stay in school rather than rush to the pros to join his dad. Physically, the younger James has the potential to be a useful player, but his game needs development. With that in mind, a plan was put in place to have Bronny shuttle between L.A. and the South Bay Lakers in the G League so that he could get more court time and continue to grow.

Bronny hasn't done much for the Lakers, and he made two uninspiring appearances for South Bay in November, averaging just 5 points, 2.5 assists, and 3 rebounds in over 28 minutes per game. Since then, he's been sidelined with a foot injury (just like his dad), but he made his return last week and put up his best game of the season, a 16-point effort against the San Diego Clippers.

For some reason, the Lakers planned to have Bronny only play home games with South Bay, which is curious given that all of the G League affiliate's games are on the West Coast. Recently though, that odd choice has been reversed.

Letting Bronny stay in the G League and play a full schedule is the most logical choice for his development. Let's see if he can build on his best game of the season.

Love him or hate him, LeBron is the King for a reason

Just as Spotify Wrapped comes out at the end of each year so that people can see and share their listening habits, Basketball Reference recently put out a graphic showing who the most-searched basketball player in every state is. The results are hilarious, if not entirely surprising.

All around the country, it's all LeBron, all the time. LeBron was the most-searched player in every state but two: Colorado, where the Nuggets' Nikola Jokic reigned supreme, and Massachusetts, where Jayson Tatum was number one.

Even though he's 39 and approaching the twilight of his career, LeBron remains the most famous player in the NBA. It's amazing that even in states with contending teams, All-NBA talent, and no direct ties to LeBron, he still wins out in the end anyway.

You'd think that Texas would have gone for Luka Doncic or Victor Wembanyama, but nope. New Yorkers should have been a lock for Jalen Brunson, or at least searching up their new star, Karl-Anthony Towns, but LeBron rules Gotham as well. Even in Alaska and Hawaii, the choice was clear.

If this was the electoral college, LeBron would have won in a landslide, proving that the more things change in the NBA, the more they stay the same. It's good to be the King.