The Los Angeles Lakers have listed LeBron James (left ankle peroneal tendinopathy) and Anthony Davis (bilateral Achilles tendinopathy) as probable for Tuesday night’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Gabe Vincent, Christian Wood, Colin Castleton, Jalen Hood-Schifino and Jarred Vanderbilt all remain out with their respective injuries with no set timetable for a return.
James received a treatment on his injured ankle over the All-Star break and was forced to miss the team’s first game coming out of it against the Golden State Warriors. He has been on the injured report ever since and while he has been able to play every game except the team’s home game against the Bucks, it’s clear that LeBron’s ankle is not at 100%.
The timing definitely isn’t great considering the Lakers are heading out on a six-game road trip with only 11 regular season games remaining. They are currently in ninth place in the Western Conference with the goal of moving up, making this road trip that much more crucial.
The hope, however, is that James sitting out the Bucks game means he is ready to go for the second end of the back-to-back on Wednesday against the Memphis Grizzlies. At this stage of the season and his career, it makes sense that LeBron is not playing two nights in a row in order to protect his ankle.
But that means that the Lakers are prioritizing beating the Grizzlies, who are one of the worst teams in the league, as opposed to the Bucks. The Lakers were able to beat Milwaukee without James last week in L.A. though so perhaps other guys will step up on Tuesday and make that happen for the second time.
LeBron James willing to ‘pick my spots’ in tough defensive matchups for Lakers
With ace defenders like Jarred Vanderbilt and others dealing with injuries, LeBron James has been tasked at times with guarding the opposing teams best player. Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard are recent examples of that, and James said he is willing to ‘pick my spots’ with tough defensive matchups.
While James cannot guard opposing stars for 48 minutes, it’s awesome that he is willing to take on that challenge at times to help the Lakers down the stretch of the season. Getting his ankle as close to 100% is most important though, which is why it looks like he will miss the first game of the Lakers’ road trip in Milwaukee.
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