Lakers: LeBron James Reportedly Cleared to Play After Negative COVID-19 Test Result
The Lakers have faced down challenges for almost the entirety of the first part of the season. With a roster that has struggled to stay healthy through the first 20-plus games, Frank Vogel and his team have had to find ways to make the wins come. That has resulted in a 12-11 record and a whole lot of disappointment.
But things were starting to look up for the Lakers. After taking down the Pistons over the weekend, Los Angeles was looking at a break in the schedule. Two games being played this week combined with a couple to be played against poor teams had us thinking they could turn things around.
And then it was announced that LeBron James was going to be entering COVID-19 protocols. A player that tests positive for COVID-19 is required to be out for a minimum of 10 days. And that's only if they are able to test negative in the days leading up. But the Lakers did get a glimmer of hope today.
The Athletic's Shams Charania reported earlier today on the Pat McAfee Show that LeBron has already received one negative test, just two days after he went into health and safety protocols.
Shams also added that LeBron is feeling fine and continues to be asymptomatic. It later came out that James had indeed been cleared, which would assume that he returned two negative PCR tests within 24 hours. The Lakers now expect him to be ready to suit up on Friday night against the Clippers.
That is huge for the Lakers as they look to take advantage of this stretch of games. James getting a game off might not have been the worst thing either, especially since they walked away with the win over the Kings.
James has averaged almost 37 minutes per game so far this season, his highest mark since he was 32-years-old. Getti
