When the Los Angeles Lakers play the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday, they will be without a vital player as LeBron James is reportedly out with a left calf contusion.
Thankfully for the Purple and Gold, despite the star big man’s hip injury, Anthony Davis is expected to play.
James is in his 21st season and will turn 39 in December, so his start to the 2023–24 campaign has been impressive.
During his nine games with the Lakers this season, he has averaged 25.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 5.4 assists. Additionally, he has continued to elude Father Time, making 56.9% of his shots thus far. His career-high field-goal percentage would be reached if he could shoot at that pace or higher for the rest of the season.
Although James playing against the Blazers would have been ideal, the team is probably trying to ensure he is healthy enough for a potential postseason run in the future. Even though Lakers coach Darvin Ham said following the team’s season opener that the four-time MVP’s playing time would be heavily controlled this season, he has already accrued a significant amount of playing time in the first few weeks of the season.
The 19-time All-Star has played an average of 35.7 minutes per game since Ham stated that James playing about 29 minutes would “in all likelihood” be a trend every game this season.
Without him, the Lakers will have to contend with Portland, even though they have some advantages going into the game.
The Blazers will be without a number of players, including Scoot Henderson, Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams III, and Anfernee Simons, and they have lost their past two games.
The Los Angeles team, which is hosting the game, is also 3-0 at home and has won against the Phoenix Suns, Orlando Magic, and Los Angeles Clippers in the past.
With any luck, James’ absence on Sunday will be made up for by Davis and the remaining healthy Lakers. The team would advance to 5-5 in the standings with a victory before playing a back-to-back set this coming week against the Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies.