LeBron James Injury Update: LA Lakers talisman could return against the Sacramento Kings tonight

LeBron James has been on the sidelines for more than a month now but the reigning NBA Finals MVP is on the verge of making his return for the LA Lakers. As reported by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, King James could feature in Friday night's game against the Sacramento Kings.

ESPN Sources: LeBron James’ return from longest absence of his career — out since March 20 with high-ankle sprain – could come tonight vs. Kings. James plans to test ankle and make a game-time decision. Otherwise, he’s likely to return as soon as Sunday vs. Toronto.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 30, 2021

As mentioned above, this has been LeBron James' longest spell on the sidelines. He suffered a high ankle sprain in the matchup between the LA Lakers and Atlanta Hawks back on March 20. King James had been posting videos of him undergoing workouts over the last week and it seems like he's ready for a full return.

It must be noted that LeBron James hasn't been completely cleared to play against the Sacramento Kings yet. He was listed as out in the LA Lakers' previous injury reports and has only been upgraded to questionable. A game-time decision will determine whether he'll feature in tonight's game or not.

LeBron James has been upgraded to questionable for tonight’s game against Sacramento.

He’s been out since March 20 with a high ankle sprain.
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) April 30, 2021

Even if LeBron James ultimately decides to sit out another fixture, he should be able to feature in the LA Lakers' next matchup against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday.

How have the LA Lakers fared in LeBron James' absence?

The Purple and Gold have struggled a lot lately

The LA Lakers are simply not the same team without LeBron James. Even Anthony Davis' return hasn't helped in stabilizing Frank Vogel's unit. LeBron has missed 20 games so far and the defending champs have managed to win only eight of those games. In fact, they've lost four of their last five matchups.

The LA Lakers currently have a 36-26 record and they've slipped all the way to the fifth seed in the Western Conference. They're just one game ahead of the sixth-placed Dallas Mavericks.

The chemistry between LeBron and AD shines on and off the court. Don't miss the latest episode of Backstage Lakers tonight.

📺: @SpectrumSN
⏰: 11PM/PT pic.twitter.com/FyHDnQNO8u
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 30, 2021

LeBron James' return will put the LA Lakers largely at full strength. With just 10 more games left in the regular season, LeBron will be hoping to build some individual momentum while reigniting the team chemistry ahead of the playoffs.

Also read: Andrew Wiggins responds to Stephen A Smith saying he'll trade the Golden State Warriors forward for cookies