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LeBron James: Ankle Is 'Horrible' After Suffering Injury in Lakers' Loss to Pelicans
March 28, 2022
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James suffered an ankle injury in the second quarter of Sunday's 116-108 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, and he told reporters in his postgame press conference that he isn't sure how he finished the game with the ailment.
"I have no idea how I finished the game," James said.
He added: "... It’s horrible. It’s horrible right now. … It’s pretty sore right now.”
James suffered the injury while trying to get in position for an offensive rebound. He appeared to roll his left ankle and immediately fell to the court clutching his ankle in pain.
The Lakers immediately called a timeout, and James went to the bench to have trainers look at his ankle. Shortly afterward, he was back on the court.
It's unclear if James will miss any time because of the injury. However, the Lakers can't afford for him to be sidelined for any amount of time at this point in the season, as they're barely hanging on to a spot in the play-in tournament.
The Lakers have already had to weather the storm without James on multiple occasions this season. In his absence, they are 6-13.
James has been one of L.A.'s bright spots this season. Entering Sunday's game against the Pelicans, he was averaging 30.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists while shooting 52.3 percent from the floor and 35.4 percent from deep in 54 games.
The Lakers' next game is on Tuesday against the Dallas Mavericks, who are fourth in the Western Conference with a 46-29 record. If James misses time beyond Tuesday, L.A. could be in deep trouble with matchups against the Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors on tap to close out the regular season.