The Los Angeles Lakers have listed LeBron James (left ankle peroneal tendinopathy) as questionable and Cam Reddish (right ankle sprain) and Anthony Davis (bilateral Achilles tendinopathy) as probable for Friday night’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Gabe Vincent, Christian Wood, Colin Castleton and Jarred Vanderbilt all remain out with their respective injuries with no set timetable for a return.
James received a treatment on his injured ankle over the All-Star break and was forced to miss the team’s first game coming out of it against the Golden State Warriors. He has been on the injured report ever since and while he has been able to play every game, it’s clear that LeBron’s ankle is not at 100%.
That was evident during Wednesday night’s loss to the Sacramento Kings as although James led the Lakers with 31 points, five rebounds and 13 assists in 36 minutes, he was forced to leave the game early.
With a few minutes left and the game essentially out of reach, James pulled himself from the game and went back to the locker room to get his ankle looked at.
After the game, LeBron said that his ankle was feeling alright although he acknowledged that it is something he has had to manage through both good and bad days.
“I’ll be alright,” James said. “It was what I was dealing with before the break, after the break. Just managing it as best as I can. Played the whole third, sat a little bit to start the fourth. When I got back in, it was kind of just whatever. Something I need to deal with.”
With a big game coming up on Friday against the Bucks, James will surely do everything he can to be in the lineup for his team although he will likely be a game-time decision leading up to tipoff. If LeBron is unable to go then that would unquestionably be a big loss for the Lakers in an extremely important game at home.
LeBron James willing to ‘pick my spots’ in tough defensive matchups for Lakers
With ace defenders like Jarred Vanderbilt and Cam Reddish dealing with injuries, LeBron James has been tasked at times with guarding the opposing teams best player. Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard are recent examples of that, and James said he is willing to ‘pick my spots’ with tough defensive matchups.
While James cannot guard opposing stars for 48 minutes, it’s awesome that he is willing to take on that challenge at times to help the Lakers down the stretch of the season.
