NBA superstar LeBron James made his return to the court for the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.
James has been away from the Los Angeles Lakers since Wednesday due to what has been described as ‘personal reasons’, with much speculation surrounding the reasons for his absence.
The 39-year-old was on the Lakers’ injury report with foot soreness last week, and on Friday he was listed as out with a left foot injury.
However, he returned to the Lakers for their clash against the Memphis Grizzlies in Los Angeles Sunday evening.
Last Sunday against Portland was the first game James has missed this season, and he made it two with his absence from the trip to Minnesota.
He did not appear to have traveled with the team to Minnesota and was not on the bench for the game.
LeBron James made his return to the court for the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night
James, pictured with wife Savannah, had stepped away from the team for personal reasons
Revealing the news of James’s absence on Wednesday, Lakers coach Redick told reporters: ‘LeBron is not with the team right now. He’s out for personal reasons, excused absence.’
He added that the veteran is ‘taking some time’ and did not have a timeframe for when James would return to the team.
James’ absence also comes after he has been shrouded in trade rumors this week.
The Golden State Warriors are said to be monitoring the veteran as they search for a second star to join Steph Curry, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported this week.
‘The Warriors have dreamed of pairing LeBron with Steph Curry and Draymond Green since last year,’ he said on the network’s ‘Get Up.’
‘They’ve made an inquiry and it got shut down last February. That was before LeBron played with Steve Kerr and Steph Curry and won the gold medal over the summer.
The 39-year-old was on the Lakers’ injury report with foot soreness last week
‘So, they will definitely monitor the situation, and I don’t think they do anything without knowing this door is locked, but I would just say with LeBron, it’s up to him. He has a no-trade clause and he has given no indication he wants the Lakers to do anything but upgrade the roster they’ve got, not that he wants to go anywhere.’
James fulfilled his dream of playing alongside his son, Bronny, in the NBA this season when the 20-year-old was selected by the Lakers in the second round of the 2024 Draft.
They became the first-ever father-son duo to suit up alongside each other in an NBA game during the Lakers’ season opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves on October 22.
However, James Jnr. was assigned to the Lakers’ G-League affiliate earlier last month and is expected to move between LA and South Bay this season.
