Is LeBron James playing tonight against the Denver Nuggets? | 2021-22 NBA season
LeBron James' LA Lakers have failed to turn on the jets more than halfway through the 2021-22 NBA season, remaining in the middle of the pack in the Western Conference. A 21-21 record is not what Lakers fans expect at this stage of the season, but they are hopeful there will be a turnaround.
The Lakers have had it easy so far, in regards to the difficulty of their schedule. As we enter the second half of the season, things will get a lot more difficult as they have more fixtures against the stronger teams. Their failure to rise to the occasion in the first half of the season puts their chances at contending for the championship in question.
Following an extremely busy offseason for the Lakers, who changed more than half of their current roster at the time, the onus to deliver has still fallen on LeBron James, and he is not getting much help from the supporting cast. At age 37, the organization chose to bring in proven scorers to ease LBJ's load, but that has not been the case.
Their high-profile signing, Russell Westbrook, has been disappointing and is currently undergoing a shooting slump. Anthony Davis has also been a shadow of himself and has not delivered at the level many know he can perform at.
With the bulk of the heavy lifting left to LeBron, his status ahead of every game is always a source of concern as he is their only hope of getting a win as things stand. The next test for the Lakers is at Denver as they take on Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets later tonight.
What is LeBron James' status for tonight's game against the Denver Nuggets?
According to the Lakers' official injury report, LeBron James is listed as "probable" on the injury report due to a rectus abdominis strain. The injury has kept him out for eight of his 12-games so far this season, with him missing two games due to ankle soreness.
The first was following a False-Positive COVID-19 test, and served a one-game suspension for his altercation with Detroit Pistons Isaiah Stewart.
Re: LeBron: James’ injury involves the rectus abdominis (the “six-pack” muscle), a muscle most active in trunk flexion that also stabilizes the pelvis. The average missed time for an abdominal strain in the NBA is ~4 games.
Although he has remained on the injury report for the same injury ever since his return, he has played in the Lakers' last 19 games. LeBron has arguably been the league's player in that stretch, but that has not resulted in as many wins as they would have liked.
LeBron James is the first player in history to improve his career scoring average in his 19th NBA season.
He's one of only two to improve his steals average and one of three to accomplish that with assists.
LeBron > Father Time. https://t.co/rPWzm4VIa2
LeBron is currently the second-best scorer in the league, averaging 29.1 points behind Kevin Durant's 29.7. His being on the injury report does not matter as there is a near 100% chance he will feature. Added to his 29.1 points are 7.4 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.1 blocks while shooting 52.4% from the field.