Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has had a rollercoaster 2021-22 season through 24 games.
He has missed half of the season thus far with respective injuries, a one-game suspension and most recently, health and safety protocol.
Though James missed only one game because he cleared protocol a few days later, he hasn’t strung together four consecutive games played. Something usually emerges that disrupts his on-court consistency.
After the Lakers lost to the L.A. Clippers in a game where James shot 9-of-23 overall and 2-of-8 from deep, he explained how his rhythm has been affected by not playing routinely.
“I feel like, obviously, before going to Sacramento I was getting into a really, really good rhythm,” James said. “Offensively, defensively, as a team, we were playing well. Those guys did a h-ll of a job winning that game. But for me, it’s been very frustrating, either dealing with the groin or the abdomen and then having to deal with the false positive that knocked me out a game and not being able to keep my rhythm.
“You go four straight days without touching a basketball or being able to get on the floor and then work, and I know how much I put into my craft on a day-to-day basis, I knew I wouldn’t have exactly what I needed for this game. But I was just happy to be out there.”
Despite the challenges the soon-to-be 37-year-old forward has faced, James expressed optimism moving forward.
“It’s been a very challenging year to start going through the season for myself, but only good things ahead,” James said.
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