LOS ANGELES — LeBron James will not play in the Los Angeles Lakers’ final two games of the season due to soreness in his left ankle, the team announced Friday.
The Lakers, already eliminated from play-in tournament contention since Tuesday’s loss to the Phoenix Suns guaranteed the San Antonio Spurs would finish ahead of them for No. 10 in the Western Conference, will host the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday and they will finish the season. on the road against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.
James has already missed five of the Lakers’ last six games since spraining his ankle against the New Orleans Pelicans on March 27.
James finishes the season averaging 30.3 points, second in the league behind the Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid (30.4), through 56 games. If Embiid’s average falls below James’s when the Sixers finish their season, James can’t claim the leading scorer title while he’s inactive. A player must play at least 58 games to be eligible for the distinction.
Still, it was the most points the 37-year-old James has averaged since his third season in the league when he scored 31.4 points per game for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The scoring average is also the highest for a player in his 19th season.
LA was just 25-31 in the games James played, the first time since his rookie year with the Cavs where his team finished under .500 in the games he played.
It marks the second time in James’ four seasons with the Lakers that he has finished the season out of the lineup with an injury while the team failed to make the playoffs.