The abdominal injury suffered by Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James could keep him out of action for the next month or two according to a new report.
Bill Oram of The Athletic pointed to a social media post from the Lakers’ former head strength and conditioning coach, Dr. Tim DiFrancesco.
“Now the owner of TD Athlete’s Edge, a training and rehab operation near Boston, DiFrancesco explained in a post Saturday morning that the injury is one that can occur with the overextension of the torso combined with extreme force — such as a powerful serve in tennis or a tomahawk dunk in basketball,” Oram wrote.
“Recovery time? Four to eight weeks for even a minor strain, according to DiFrancesco.”
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An earlier report indicated that James could miss a week, but that may be too optimistic when it comes to making sure the 36-year-old James is fully recovered.
James also missed an extended period of time last season because of injury. That resulted in the Lakers slumping down the stretch and making a quick playoff exit.
The Lakers had already gotten off to a slow start this season and currently have a mediocre 5-5 record on the year. Not having James available until perhaps January could end up putting them in a huge hole.
James is currently in his 19th NBA season and his extensive playoff resume over the years has been the equivalent of three additional regular seasons.
The Lakers and their fans are certainly hoping that that long-distance diagnosis being offered in this case turns out more positively. If, however, it proves to be accurate, it could have a chilling effect on any more talk of a deep playoff run.
