LeBron James 'good to go' after rolling ankle in final game vs. Pelicans before play-in
Though it looked as if LeBron James injured his ankle yet again in the final minutes of the regular season Sunday night, Los Angeles Lakers coach Frank Vogel said that James is “good to go” headed into their play-in matchup Wednesday night.
James, after battling a lengthy ankle injury over the past several weeks, rolled that ankle midway through the fourth quarter of their 110-98 win against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center.
James fell to the court after a missed layup attempt, and remained on the ground briefly in pain. He eventually stood up on his own and limped over to the Lakers bench. He did not return.
LeBron leaves the game after rolling his ankle pic.twitter.com/zV1NfdagOx
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 17, 2021
James finished the night with a team-high 25 points and six assists.
James had missed 22 of the Lakers’ last 26 games with an ankle injury. He finally returned to the court Saturday for their win against the Indiana Pacers, when he put up 24 points.
Lakers set for play-in tournament
While it looked like James and the Lakers were finally healthy headed into the postseason, James’ latest ankle issue couldn’t have come at a worse time.
The Lakers finished the regular season in the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference, and are now set to take on the Golden State Warriors in the new postseason play-in tournament Wednesday night. The winner will advance into the playoffs, while the loser will have to take on the winner of the other Western Conference play-in game.
Though Vogel said that James is fine and will be available, the Lakers know how difficult that matchup will be — especially considering that the Warriors have won eight of their last nine games.
“We’re not going into this game thinking it’s going to be easy,” Anthony Davis said, via the The Athletic’s Bill Oram. “It’s definitely going to be tough.”
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