LeBron James injury update: How long will the Lakers’ star be out?

The Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is reportedly out indefinitely with a right foot injury. He was ruled out for the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday. According to Shams Charania from the Athletic, James is “likely to miss an extended period of time” with the injury. He had injured his foot in the third quarter of the Sunday game against the Dallas Mavericks; however, he finished the game with 26 points, scoring 11 points in the fourth quarter. 

During the game against the Mavericks, he went down in pain while attempting a layup. While he was down, he kept saying, “I heard a pop” to his teammates. What’s more troubling is that he suffered a non-contact injury before clutching his foot in pain. James was spotted hobbling out of the American Airlines Center after the game.

After the news of the injury broke, James update a story on Instagram captioned,“F*n sucks!!!!” The injury was scheduled to be evaluated in the morning on Monday. After the game, head coach Darvin Ham told reporters that James was fine. “He’s good,” Ham said on Sunday. “Our medical people are looking at him right now, and we’ll get a reevaluation in the morning.” If reports are to be believed, James will be out indefinitely and the Lakers should be prepared to deal with his absence for the next few games.

Related: LeBron James says ankle is ‘A Little Sore’ after comeback win over Mavericks

LeBron James’ injury could hurt the Lakers’ playoff hopes

There is no doubt that the period of James’ injury was maybe the worst that the squad could have faced at this time. They have 21 games left until the playoffs and are now ranked 12th in the Western Conference. Nevertheless, they are only one game behind the tenth-place New Orleans Pelicans in the quest for a spot in the play-in tournament. Moreover, they are 1.5 games behind sixth-place Dallas in the race for a playoff position. 

Winning games without James is one of the most daunting challenges the Lakers could have encountered this season. The Lakers are 5-9 without James, despite Anthony Davis’ brilliance. They face the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday, but then they play the Oklahoma City Thunder, Minnesota Timberwolves, and the short-handed Warriors in the following four games. Davis and others would have to pick up their game and clinch a postseason spot for the Lakers to be successful without James. 

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