Just when it seemed the Los Angeles Lakers might finally be on track for a playoff push, they received some bad news regarding the foot injury LeBron James suffered Sunday against the Mavericks.
The injury is expected to sideline the NBA’s all-time leading scorer a minimum of two weeks and potentially more, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Tuesday.
That means the Lakers will have to attempt their climb from 12th place in the Western Conference without James for the next eight games or more — a third of their remaining schedule at minimum. At 29-32, they’re just 1/2 game out of the 10th and final play-in tournament spot entering Tuesday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies. But the Lakers aren’t favored to win as 9.5-point road dogs.
The news is a tough blow for the Lakers — and Lakers bettors — who just saw their championship odds recover from a disappointing start to the season thanks to some aggressive maneuvering at the trade deadline.
The additions of D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt and others took LA from +5000 odds to the +3000 odds of today. But while James’ injury didn’t exactly put a dent in odds that weren’t the shortest to begin with, it hurts a lot — no pun intended.
ESPN Sources: LeBron James’s right foot is expected to be reassessed in two weeks to see how much progress he’s made, but timeline on return expected to extend beyond that checkpoint. Where Lakers reside in standings by then could impact how soon it makes sense for him to return.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 28, 2023
LA opened the season with +1800 title odds, which dropped after a putrid start that included eight losses in their first 10 games. Anthony Davis provided some hope with his best stretch of basketball to bring the team closer to respectable, but then he got injured. James started playing like an MVP to keep LA afloat before news of a potential Kyrie Irving trade sent their title odds soaring. But once Irving was traded to Dallas, those odds dropped again before the trade deadline helped them bounce back.
It’s truly been a rollercoaster ride for anyone who bet on this team at any point during the season.
At full health, the Lakers had little margin for error. Now, they need to be practically flawless just to manage a stretch of schedule without James that includes two games against Memphis, and others against the Thunder, Timberwolves, Warriors, Raptors, Knicks and Pelicans.
It could be tougher for sure, but none of those teams are chalk wins. LA’s one saving grace might be the fact that five of those eight projected games without James are at home — and they have the NBA’s fifth easiest remaining schedule.
It won’t be nearly as easy without James.
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