LeBron limping into final stretch of season

LeBron James has been battling through an ankle injury for the last few months, and had to have treatment on it during the All-Star Break. He missed the game against the Warriors in the Lakers first game back, and even though he played the last two games against San Antonio and Phoenix, he is listed as questionable for tonight’s game against the Clippers.

Currently sitting in the 10th spot in the West the Lakers have to win games, but they also want the NBA’s All-Time leading scorer to be healthy come the end of the season and into the playoffs. Darvin Ham, LeBron and the medical staff are doing a balancing act to ensure they have a chance to win as many games as possible while keeping the No. 23 healthy.

The Lakers had to get through the Play-In game last year before making it all the way to the Western Conference Finals. They would like to avoid having to go through the Play-In Tournament this year, but they come into tonight 3.5 games back of Phoenix who have the final automatic playoff spot sitting in 6th in the West.

LeBron is 39 years old, but he is still averaging 25 points and grabbing 7.2 rebounds while dishing 7.9 assists a game. He’s played in 51 of the Lakers 59 games but load management was been an issue, especially when you consider he has been on a minutes limit that has been followed very casually.