LeBron James' Sciatica Injury Updated by Lakers' Redick, 'Those Things Can Be Tricky'

Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick provided an update on LeBron James' absence due to sciatica on his right side.

"You hope he can be back soon," Redick said Saturday, per Lakers insider Jovan Buha. "Those things can be tricky."

On Thursday, the team announced that James would miss the start of the 2025-26 regular season and be reevaluated in approximately three-to-four weeks due to the issue.

Redick wasn't ready to commit to the exact starting lineup that Los Angeles will use without James in the mix.

"It is unclear what the starting lineup is going to be," Redick told reporters. "That's the reality until he's back, so we'll have to figure that out."

ESPN's Shams Charania reported Friday that James suffered the injury during an offseason workout in "late July, early August" and had "not done much basketball for well over a month" before the start of training camp.

Redick initially said that James was dealing with "a little bit of nerve irritation in the glute" after the team's first practice on Sept. 30, per Jenna West and Law Murray of The Athletic.

Los Angeles could utilize a variety of starting lineups based on its opponent each night, especially if the NBA's all-time leading scorer is out beyond three weeks.

The Lakers might go small with Marcus Smart and Austin Reaves alongside Luka Dončić, or Redick may choose a lineup with more size that includes Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbilt in the frontcourt next to Deandre Ayton.

It'll still be difficult to replicate James' impact, as the four-time MVP didn't show many signs of slowing down during his 2024-25 campaign. The 40-year-old averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game on 51.3/37.6/78.2 shooting splits across 70 appearances.

The Lakers will open their 2025-26 season against the Golden State Warriors on Oct. 21.