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Lakers' LeBron James, Anthony Davis Not Ruled out for Final 2 Games, Frank Vogel Says
April 8, 2022
The Los Angeles Lakers have yet to shut down LeBron James and Anthony Davis for the remainder of the season.
"We'll see, we haven't ruled that out," head coach Frank Vogel told reporters of the two stars. "We're going to see how they are feeling."
The Lakers, who have three games left, already confirmed James (left ankle sprain) and Davis (right mid-foot sprain) will be absent for Thursday's matchup with the Golden State Warriors.
After failing to qualify for the play-in tournament, Los Angeles has nothing left to play for.
The last two games are, however, rather significant to James. The threshold to qualify for the scoring title is 58 games, and the 18-time All-Star is stuck on 56 appearances.
Only 0.1 points per game separate James (30.3) from Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid (30.4). If LeBron does suit up Friday and Sunday, then he could overtake Embiid.
However, NBA insider Marc Stein reported Wednesday that James would be "likely to continue sitting" in the event the Lakers are eliminated from the postseason picture, regardless of any implications on the scoring race.
At this point, there's little else that needs to be said about Los Angeles. This is one of the most disappointing seasons for any team in recent memory, and Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer already reported Vogel might be a lame duck.
Whether James and Davis play or not, everybody on the Lakers is basically running out the clock until the offseason arrives.