The Los Angeles Lakers had been rolling in the second half of the 2024-25 season before LeBron James injured his groin.
While James avoided a major injury, his absence has hurt the Lakers the past couple of weeks as they recently had a 0-4n road trip, which was tough considering how close the Western Conference standings are. Without James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves have had to shoulder more of the offensive burden.
Aside from James, Rui Hachimura has also been out of the lineup due to a knee injury and his status exacerbates the frontcourt depth problem. Fortunately, head coach JJ Redick appears to be adapting well to the circumstances as he’s got the team back to playing good basketball.
James continues to be an offensive force in Year 22, but Redick noted how much he and the Lakers miss his presence on the defensive end.
“Yeah, it’s tough. Both of those guys have been so good for us on that end,” Redick said of James and Hachimura. “Rui kind of just being a connector, just being able to switch everything. And then LeBron, I literally said to him during the San Antonio game during a timeout, I said you know what we miss? We miss your voice on the defensive end. Our communication level has gone down significantly and talk is a contagious thing. When one guy is consistently talking, it forces everybody else to.
“So we miss both of those guys a lot. And then with LeBron obviously, he’s an elite defensive rebounder and can go grab a basketball that’s outside of his space as well as anyone at his position.”
James clearly has bought into this team as he played hard on both ends of the floor which in turn allowed Los Angeles to put up some of the best defensive numbers in the league. James might not be the same athlete as he used to be, but his size, physicality and basketball IQ allows him to make plays on defense and ignite the offense.
Redick also mentioned that James and Hachimura are considered day-to-day still, which means their returns could be imminent. While James and Hachimura will unlikely have a full practice to get themselves ready for games, just them being available will greatly boost the team’s play on both ends.
Rich Paul says LeBron James has moved on from Stephen A. Smith drama
LeBron James is fiercely loyal to his family and recently got into a situation with Stephen A. Smith about comments over his son Bronny James. However, LeBron’s agent Rich Paul said he has moved on from the drama with Smith.
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