News: 3 days agoJames is expected to miss at least 1-to-2 weeks due to a groin strain, Shams Charania of ESPN reports.
Spin: This coincides with what Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com reported Saturday night, but Charania also revealed that James will wait for the injury to calm down over the next 24 hours before receiving another evaluation. McMenamin relayed that James could be sidelined for "weeks, not days," and coach JJ Redick said there's "obvious concern" about the forward's availability moving forward. James suffered the injury midway through the fourth quarter of Saturday's game and finished with 22 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists across 35 minutes. Boston snapped the Lakers' eight-game winning streak, and now the hottest team in the NBA since the Luka Doncic trade could be in trouble. The Lakers may get Rui Hachimura (knee) back soon, which should help mitigate James' absence, while Doncic and Austin Reaves will run the show on offense. Dalton Knecht, Gabe Vincent and Cam Reddish are also candidates for more minutes.
