LeBron James returned to action this week after missing 20 games with a high ankle sprain. Unfortunately for him and the Lakers, he struggled in both games.
James ended up scoring 16 points in 32 minutes in a loss to the Sacramento Kings on Friday night, only to then turn around and put up 19 points, seven rebounds, and six assists in 27 minutes on Sunday in a loss to the Toronto Raptors. He ultimately exited that latter game early and did not return.
Fans immediately assumed the worst when James couldn’t finish the Raptors game, and they were right.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Ramona Shelburne, James will now miss at least one outing as a result of his injury woes.
“Lakers star LeBron James is expected to sit out vs. Denver tonight to rest his right ankle,” they reported.
“James re-aggravated the ankle in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s loss to Toronto. Lakers have lost 6 of 7 games.”
This has been an absolutely brutal season for James. After LeBron started out as an early MVP favorite and watching his team play some of the best basketball in the league, injuries absolutely ravaged both James’ season and the Lakers’.
Sadly 2021 has just been that sort of year. James survived a terrifying threat from a crazed fan. He has been involved in some pretty controversial on-the-court plays. And he’s faced some serious backlash over one particular tweet.
Will whatever bad juju is hanging over his head go away by the time the playoffs roll around? Here’s to hoping.
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