For just the second time this season, LeBron James was a healthy scratch for the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, as he sat out of the team's loss against the Detroit Pistons. Granted, it was a decision he had a say in, but that hasn’t made playing less minutes and sitting out while being completely healthy any easier for him.
Following the Lakers’ loss to the Toronto Raptors on Thursday in the first leg of the team’s road back-to-back, James told reporters that having a limited availability has been difficult for him so far (via Spectrum SportsNet):
“It’s challenging for me mentally because I’m so accustomed to being out on the floor, especially when I’m healthy, but it was a conversation between myself and my trainer and the coaching staff and the front office, and this is the direction they wanted to go with the remainder of the season given the lack of success we’ve had as a ball club.