The Los Angeles Lakers’ title defense will be short-lived if LeBron James isn’t right.
When healthy, I’m not sure there’s a player in NBA history with as vast, as impressive, or as complete of a skill set as LeBron James. And health hadn’t really been an issue for LeBron through the first decade and a half of his career. However, with the NBA playoffs and a title defense on the horizon, LeBron is facing late-season injury concerns for the second time in three seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers.
LeBron officially returned from an ankle injury, that forced him to miss more than a month of the season, last week (April 30). Though, according to a recent report, LeBron is slated to miss at least the team’s next two games as he continues to work through some discomfort in his ankle.
It’s unclear if he suffered a setback, but there’s one thing clear – the Lakers’ postseason outlook isn’t great if LeBron, for whatever reason, setback or not, isn’t right.
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The report suggests that LeBron could miss more than just the two games reported and there have been other whispers that suggest that LeBron hasn’t entirely healed completely from his injury and that he made an early return to try and help the Lakers get to the postseason.
LeBron James needs to be healthy entering the playoffs
That’s the part that worries me regarding the Lakers’ upcoming postseason run. Just a couple of seasons ago, LeBron rushed back from an injury to try and carry the Lakers into the postseason. It didn’t work out and LeBron looked like a shell of his former self as the team would miss out on the postseason.
It was obvious he wasn’t right all along.
We’re seeing some of the same signs in LeBron’s return from injury this time around. In his return, LeBron hasn’t looked like his normal self and it’s clear that his ankle probably isn’t 100 percent. As great as LeBron is and has been throughout his career, it’s unfair to think that a 36-year-old LeBron will be able to carry the Lakers in a title defense and recover as he did when he wasn’t 100 percent at a different stage of his career.
Father time hasn’t been visible much in LeBron’s career thus far, but we’ve seen glimpses of it when he’s battled injuries – especially over the course of the last three seasons.
It’s an easy stance to say that the Lakers probably aren’t winning a championship this season without LeBron. But, the Lakers aren’t probably winning a championship this season even with an 80 percent version LeBron.
We saw it during his first season with the Lakers and are beginning to see it again. LeBron isn’t at a stage in his career where he can carry the load without being 100 percent. A fully healthy and motivated LeBron is probably the closes thing that we’ve ever seen to the greatness that was Michael Jordan.
But, and as blasphemous as it may sound, an 80 percent LeBron at 36 is not good enough to win a championship alone. With Anthony Davis still trying to find his rhythm himself, the Lakers can’t feel good about where this team is with just seven games remaining before the start of the playoffs.
If LeBron isn’t right – and there’s no guarantee that he will be in a couple of weeks when the postseason begins – the Lakers’ NBA title defense may end up being a short one.