LeBron James’ Availability for Lakers-76ers Could be Up in the Air

LeBron James was on the injury report prior to the 76ers matchup.

Nov 8, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) salutes before a game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images | Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images

There was a chance the Los Angeles Lakers could’ve rolled without LeBron James heading into their matchup against the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night.

At that point, James was a name to monitor from the Philadelphia 76ers’ perspective as they would meet the Lakers on Tuesday night in South Philly.

As James is currently managing a left foot injury, his presence on the injury report was seemingly precautionary. As expected, the probable LeBron was cleared for action against the Hornets on the road.

The Lakers continued rolling on Monday night. LeBron’s contributions came during a 36-minute shift. He put up 17 shots from the field, making 53 percent of his attempts.

Although he struggled from three, going just 1-8 from deep, LeBron was still productive enough to add 22 points to his team’s scoring total. He teased a triple-double by racking up eight assists and coming down with seven rebounds.

The Lakers ended up defeating the Hornets with a five-point victory.

LAKERS WIN AGAIN! 4 in a row 🔥🔥🔥🔥

AD: 42 PTS | 24 REB | 2 AST | 2 BLK
LeBron: 22 PTS | 8 AST | 7 REB
Reaves: 17 PTS | 6 AST | 5 REB | 3 STL
Christie: 10 PTS (3-6 3PM)
pic.twitter.com/uXWjlUJi6J

— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) January 28, 2025

On Tuesday night, the Lakers are searching for their fifth win in a row.

They’ll get an opportunity to take care of business against a Sixers team they previously had success against earlier in the year.

Back on November 8, the Lakers hosted the Sixers, who were shorthanded. During that contest, LeBron checked in for 34 minutes. He made 64 percent of his shots to score 21 points.

He collected one of his many triple-doubles of the season in that game, grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out 13 assists. The Lakers put the Sixers away with a 10-point victory and fired up a six-game win streak from that point on.

The Lakers are moving with the assumption that they could be shorthanded against the Sixers. Meanwhile, the 76ers know they’ll be without a handful of key players, including Joel Embiid, Andre Drummond, Caleb Martin, Paul George, KJ Martin, and Jared McCain.

The Sixers hope to stay on track to collect their third win in a row.

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