Lakers’ LeBron James could return against Celtics on Friday

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James could make his return from injury later this week against the Boston Celtics.

The Los Angeles Lakers may soon receive a major boost to the lineup as LeBron James could return from injury.

James has missed the last seven games with a rectus abdominal strain he suffered in the second win against the Houston Rockets. He was initially supposed to miss at least one week, but it has been a longer road to recovery than anticipated for the soon-to-be 37-year-old forward.

The latest update on James was that he was returning “soon” and had progressed well in on-court workouts.

Now, James could make his highly anticipated return later this week, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:

There’s growing optimism that Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James — who has been out two weeks with an abdominal strain — could make his return against the Boston Celtics on Friday, sources told ESPN.

James has been making good progress on a return and Friday’s meeting with the Celtics (7:30 PM, ESPN) looms as a target for him to rejoin the Lakers’ lineup.

That target date means James will miss the game Wednesday against the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks.

But the Lakers will definitely need him against the Boston Celtics since Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown await.

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