“Similar kind of play, the guy falling onto my leg” - LeBron James compares his injury scare against Memphis Grizzlies to the one he suffered last season
LeBron James almost suffered a similar injury to the one he picked up last season during the LA Lakers' 121-118 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
The incident occurred when James went in for a defensive rebound, and Grizzlies forward Desmond Bane fell on his leg.
The Lakers star appeared to be in a great deal of pain and held his leg for a while. It took him a long time to get back on his feet.
During the post-game press conference, the 36-year-old revealed he was worried that he might have injured his ankle again. He said (via Mark Medina):
"The first thing I was thinking to myself is not again. Because obviously it was almost kind of similar but not the same kind of play. The guy falling onto my leg and there is nothing you can do about it. I couldn’t get my leg out in time, so. So just wanted to try and take a moment on the floor just you know, hopefully it wasn’t getting worse. I had an opportunity to tie my shoe again to see if I ccould continue to go and I was able to continue to go. But its a little sore right now.”
LeBron James returned to the floor after getting some treatment and ended the night with 19 points, six assists, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals."
The LA Lakers are already without four key rotation players, and losing the 'King' to injury would have been terrible for the franchise.
LeBron James and LA Lakers grab their first win of the season
The LeBron James-led LA Lakers finally won their first game of the 2021-22 NBA season. They struggled to find their rhythm in their opening two matches, but that wasn't the case against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Carmelo Anthony played an important role in the win. He scored 28 points off the bench on 10-of-15 shooting, including six of eight from three-point range. He also surpassed Moses Malone to become the ninth-highest scorer in NBA history.
Carmelo passes Moses Malone for ninth on the NBA's all-time scoring list 🙌 https://t.co/TfUwVTk9c2
The LA Lakers looked comfortable on offense for large swathes of the match. However, there was little to no improvement on defense, an area they have dominated over the last two years. The Lakers were without key players like Trevor Ariza and Talen Horton-Tucker.
The LA Lakers will likely improve on that front once the two players return later in the season.
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