LeBron James has managed to remain as productive as ever in Year 20, though the Los Angeles Lakers’ record hasn’t reflected that quite yet.
James has done his best to keep the Lakers afloat in the standings, though wear and tear is finally starting to show as he’s dealing with a foot injury. The King was forced to miss three games before returning in the win against the New Orleans Pelicans, but some people in the organization are still concerned about him being run into the ground.
The foot injury was painful enough for James to get an MRI, but fortunately nothing serious turned up. James was grateful to find no real damage to his foot and said he’s feeling good so far.
“Absolutely. Just knowing there was no structural damage. No stress reaction. No stress fracture. No bone chips or breaks or anything like that. It was just something that had to calm down from last Tuesday,” James said after the win over the Pelicans.
“So, I was able to obviously not stress it as much because I haven’t been able to play the last couple games, or the last three games, I believe it was, and got some really good work in in Portland. I was getting some good work in Portland and felt confident that I can go tonight after getting some great work this morning on the court. So felt pretty good about it and my ankle and my foot feels pretty good right now. So, it’s a good start.”
Fortunately for James, he’ll get some extra time off during the All-Star break which he thinks will be very beneficial for him and the team in general.
“It’s amazing. It’s great. It falls at the perfect time. I didn’t want to have to take off the last three games, but my foot and ankle just wasn’t allowing me to go out and compete like I know I can compete. It was good to get a game under my belt with these guys tonight to digest what we got going into the break and will do some more homework during the break obviously to see how we can be even better. But it’s going to be very beneficial to myself. I know I got a game on Sunday, but we don’t play again until Thursday. It’ll be great for not only me, but the rest of the group as well.”
L.A.’s postseason hopes hinge on James’s health, so keeping him as fresh as possible down the stretch is of the utmost importance.
LeBron James to be honored at halftime of All-Star Game for breaking scoring record
James hadn’t played since breaking the scoring record against the Oklahoma City Thunder, so it was good to see him out there against the Pelicans. James was able to celebrate the feat against the Thunder immediately after it happened, but the NBA is reportedly set to honor him some more during halftime of the NBA All-Star Game.
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