Lakers star LeBron James out against Nuggets with lingering ankle injury
LeBron James’ ankle, it seems, is still bothering him.
James missed the Los Angeles Lakers’ game against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday due to his left ankle. The Lakers lost 129-118 and fell one game out of the play-in tournament, in 11th place in the Western Conference standings.
James had missed two games with the left ankle sprain last week, but returned on Friday.
Lakers star LeBron James will be out today vs. Nuggets as he deals with nagging ankle injury, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. The Lakers are currently one game behind San Antonio for the final Play-In spot.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 3, 2022
James first rolled his ankle last Sunday against the New Orleans Pelicans after stepping on Jaxson Hayes’ foot. James finished that game, but said after that his ankle felt “horrible.”
He missed their next two games, and left the road trip early to return to Los Angeles. James did return on Friday for their game against the Pelicans at home, though he and Anthony Davis — who also returned after missing 18 games with a right foot sprain — weren’t enough to lead the Lakers to the win.
James put up 38 points while shooting 13-of-23 from the field in that loss.
"Just feels like you can't catch a break," James said after the game, via ESPN. "No matter what's going on on the floor, it just feels like the ball bounces the other way. The ball doesn't always bounce in our favor. Or a call doesn't go in our favor. It's just like, when it rains, it pours for our year. It's just the way it's been going."
James is averaging a career-high 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists in 56 games so far this season.
The Lakers have just four games left on their schedule, including against the Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors — two of the top three teams in the West — before ending the season against the Nuggets.
Denver, on the other hand, won for the fourth time in its last five games. The Nuggets moved into fifth in the Western Conference, breaking a tie with the Utah Jazz.
