LeBron James’ return from his ankle injury can’t come soon enough for the Los Angeles Lakers as they have gone 8-13 in games without the four-time NBA champion. The reigning champions have also played with the third-worst offensive rating (105.9) since James sustained the injury on March 20.
The Lakers are fighting to avoid the play-in tournament, currently holding a 2.0-game advantage over the seventh-placed Portland Trail Blazers after the 116-107 loss to the Washington Wizards.
But the little amount of time the 36-year-old All-Star will have to rebuild chemistry with his teammates and get to know the new pieces in Andre Drummond and Ben McLemore could potentially prove even more detrimental to the team’s title pursuit.