Lakers’ LeBron James out with left leg pain

Tyrone Liu proves it with a championship ring.

“I said,” Liu said, “that we have LeBron James; we always had a chance to win.” ”

But what if you don’t have it?

Lakers, who have already lost to James on the court, may face even more problems off the court. James pulled out of the game midway through the fourth quarter of Wednesday night’s game with a grip on the inside of his left thigh.

The team eventually referred to the injury as “left leg soreness”.

James missed 17 games after straining his left groin in his first season with the Lakers, later claiming it was partially torn.

On Wednesday, James said the injury is not as severe as it was in 2018. He said he would do an injury imaging on Thursday.

“I didn’t do anything extraneous in the play,” he said. “When I landed, I felt a slight spasm or tension in my groin.”

James said he plans to receive treatment around the clock, and if all goes well, he hopes to be on the court when the Lakers host the Sacramento Kings on Friday.

Before getting injured, James scored 30 points, intercepting an offensive rhythm for the first time since the start of the season, hitting four of nine three-point shots. But after posting on Paul George with six minutes left and taking a foul, James convulsed in pain and started grabbing his inside leg. At the next stoppage of play, he limped off the court and into the tunnel.

The Lakers fell to 2–9, losing to the Clippers 114–101 at the Crypto.com Arena.

“Just a lot of adversity,” Lakers coach Darwin Ham said.

It’s the latest part of the early-season troubles the Lakers and Ham have faced, having already seen two players undergo the same thumb surgery, a stomach virus infiltrating the locker room, and permanent injuries to two of their biggest stars.

Anthony Davis has been battling back pain since preseason, giving him a permanent spot on the team’s injury record earlier this season. In the first half of Wednesday, he appeared to make matters worse by grabbing his back after one game.

James is also regularly featured in the team’s injury reports due to pain in his left leg, which caused him to miss the team’s game in Utah on Monday. Before Wednesday’s game, James said the injury would only heal if he didn’t play.

“Rest is the only way to help him that I don’t have. So I will play it day after day,” James said before the game. “Tonight I’ll be in the squad.”

But Friday? Who knows?

“You still have to try to find ways to win whether he’s on the lineup or not,” Davis said.

Ham said he urged James to take his time and make sure his recovery is complete.

“Do what you have to do, take care of your body and just listen. Do what you’ve always done,” Ham told James. “He’s a pro, top of the food chain in a lot of areas, and one of those areas is that he really actively responds to how his body physically manifests itself to play at the level that he plays. Again, I think I mentioned that he is the last guy I care about in terms of taking care of my body, eating right, resting, exercising and all that. He is a five-star general in this department, among many others.”