NBA Star LeBron James Takes Leave from LA Lakers for ‘Personal Reasons’ Amid Shooting Struggles

Los Angeles Lakers head coach J.J. Redick announced that LeBron James is currently away from the team for “personal reasons.”

Redick clarified that James’ absence is excused and comes as the player continues to recover from a foot injury that caused him to miss his first game of the year on Wednesday.

The coach acknowledged that LeBron James has been feeling “gassed,” and the team believes they may not be managing his minutes effectively in his 22nd NBA season.

Redick also mentioned that James had requested to be taken out of a few games for breaks, highlighting the need for careful workload management.

“For us, we have to be cognizant as we play more and more games, just the cumulative effect of playing a lot of minutes and Sunday, being banged up with the foot thing, it felt like a good opportunity for him to get some rest,” Redick said.

Earlier in the season, LeBron James had expressed his goal to play in all 82 games, but that aspiration has since shifted.

Despite recording six triple-doubles this season—including a stretch of four consecutive games—his scoring average of 23.0 points per game is the lowest of his career since his rookie season with the Cleveland Cavaliers over 20 years ago.