LeBron James injury update: Will Lakers superstar play tonight against Minnesota?
By Quinn Everts
LeBron James played the first 23 games of the 2024-25 NBA season, but now he's about to miss his second straight, as the Lakers officially ruled James out for Friday's game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with a sore left foot.
The scheduling of the NBA Cup has made it possible for James to take over a week off and stay off his foot without missing a large chunk of the Lakers schedule. He last played last Friday against Atlanta, recording a 39-point triple-double.
This will be LA's first game since Sunday — which LeBron also missed — and the Lakers next game is on Sunday, and the next game after that is next Thursday.
If LeBron sits out Sunday's game against the Grizzlies and then returns on Thursday against the Kings, he will have had 12 days off while only missing three games. That type of rest should not be overlooked for a 39 year-old who is still carrying a huge load for his team.
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Los Angeles Lakers are taking cautious approach to LeBron James injury
LeBron played 71 games last season, his most since 2017-18. Then he helped lead the United States to a gold medal in the 2024 Paris Olympics. He hasn't gotten an extended period of rest since last offseason, so it's smart for the Lakers to be extra cautious of any soreness James is feeling.
For someone who exudes so much effort to stay in peak physical shape, the best method is to trust James when he asks for a few days off, and the Lakers appear to be doing that.
The only problem, of course, is that LA doesn't have James on the court right now. Even as James' counting stats begin to drop, his impact on the floor is still that of an All-Star, perhaps All NBA player. At 13-11 in a fierce Western Conference, the Lakers don't have a ton of breathing room to play with when its stars are sidelined. Still, resting James until he's back at 100 percent is the correct managerial move, especially when games are so spaced out like they have been this month.