Lakers Injury Report: LeBron James Surprisingly Ruled Out For Clash vs Pacers

Ricardo Sandoval | Feb 8, 2025

Mar 24, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) drives past Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) in the second half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers will be without their star player, forward LeBron James, for this matchup against the Indiana Pacers.

James, who went from questionable to doubtful on Friday, has been ruled out for Saturday's contest.

ESPN's Dave McMenamin shared via X.

LeBron James is out today, per the Lakers. https://t.co/GcxwK6yrBC

— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) February 8, 2025

James will miss his fourth game of the season due to left ankle soreness.

The Lakers will look for their 31st win of the season and their 18th win in front of their home fans without James on the court.

With the four-time NBA champion ruled out, the Lakers will turn to Rui Hachimura and Dorian Finney-Smith to help carry the load left by the superstar forward.

Jarred Vanderbilt could also see a boost in minutes in the frontcourt.

Vanderbilt has been ramping up his play as he almost went on a full calendar year without playing basketball. He is slowly getting back to the player he was and has been a major help to the Laker's defense since his return in late January.

James will be missed dearly. He is the team's leading scorer, averaging 24.5 points per game, 7.8 rebounds, 9.0 assists, and 0.9 steals while shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 39.1 percent from three in 34.7 minutes of action and 46 games.

The Lakers will be without their two newest superstars, James and Luka Dončić.

Dončić was expected to make his debut on Saturday after being out for more than a month due to a left calf strain. However, after Thursday's matchup against the Warriors, it became likely that he would miss Saturday's game and will likely make his debut on Monday against the Utah Jazz.

Dončić's debut on Monday will be one of the more highly anticipated debuts in a long time.

The Lakers are home underdogs in this matchup, with Indiana as the favorites with a -4.5 spread.

The Lakers will look to send the Pacers back to .500 on the road, as they hold a 14-13 record.

As for the Lakers, they have a 17-6 home record.

L.A. has been on a roll in their last 10 games, recording an 8-2 record while averaging 115.0 points and shooting 51.6 percent from the field.

The Pacers sit with a 7-3 record in their last 10 games.

Two of the hottest teams in the NBA will settle it out in Downtown Los Angeles.

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