The Los Angeles Lakers have had to navigate the early part of the 2021-22 NBA season without LeBron James for a majority of it. James has played in only 11 of the team’s 23 games thus far this season as he has dealt with a myriad of issues.
James had a sore ankle earlier in the season that forced him to the sidelines for a few games. He then suffered an abdominal injury that sidelined him again. He was suspended one game for his actions in the game against the Detroit Pistons involving Isaiah Stewart. Most recently, James was sidelined because of the league’s health and safety protocols.
James missed Tuesday’s game against the Sacramento Kings when he landed in the league’s protocols. The Lakers won that game behind a dominant second half, 117-92. James went on social media to share his displeasure with the protocols that were put in place following Thanksgiving last week.
The team was preparing for him to miss multiple games, as players who test positive are sidelined 10 days at a minimum. But, James has been cleared to return to play for Friday night’s matchup against the LA Clippers.
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According to sources at ESPN, James has taken eight tests since returning home on Tuesday afternoon and all eight have come back negative following what was believed to be a positive test Tuesday morning in Sacramento.
The league shared a statement on Thursday sharing that LeBron James never actually tested positive. Why he missed Tuesday’s game and the steps taken for him to be reinstated were detailed on the statement.
“James was originally placed in the Protocols on Tuesday, November 30 after a series of tests delivered conflicting results, including an initial positive test that was collected on November 29. Additional testing confirmed that he is not a positive case,” the league said.
“In accordance with the Protocols, and the consistent testing practice that has been in place since the 2019-20 Season Restart in Orlando, the sample that produced the initial positive test was re-run twice and returned one negative and one positive result on two different PCR instruments. As a result, James underwent additional testing on November 30, with one test returning a negative result and a second test resulting in a clinically inconclusive result.”
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This is great news for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, as they have struggled mightily without him on the court. Los Angeles is 7-4 in the games that he has played in this season, but only 5-7 without him. Now, for the LA Clippers? Not so much…
