The Lakers are going to have to find a way to tread water without LeBron James for at least a month.
James has a four-to-six-week recovery timetable starting from when he first suffered his high-ankle sprain last Saturday, according to Stadium’s Shams Charania. The Lakers, who are also without Anthony Davis, lost to the Hawks the day the 36-year-old James got hurt and lost two games since then entering Thursday’s game against the 76ers.
Los Angeles’ April 17 game against the Jazz would be exactly four weeks since the injury. If James is out at least through that game, he’d end up missing a minimum of 15 games, including an April 10 matchup in Brooklyn against the Nets and an April 12 date at the Garden vs. the Knicks.
James had his right ankle rolled on by the Hawks’ Solomon Hill.
“Nothing angers and saddens me more than not being available to and for my teammates!” James wrote on Twitter after the injury. “I’m hurt inside and out right now. The road back from recovery begins now. Back soon like I never left.”
Davis, who’s been out since Feb. 14 with a calf strain, is still roughly two weeks away from a return, according to Stadium.
The Lakers (28-16) entered Thursday holding the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference and did not make any big moves at the NBA trade deadline. They could look to the buyout market to augment the roster.
