In case they somehow weren’t already, the Los Angeles Lakers are officially in deep, deep trouble.
The Lakers lost a very pivotal game to the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday. Though they led by 20 points at the half and by as many as 23 overall, the Lakers melted down spectacularly and lost 116-108. To make matters even worse, LeBron James suffered a sprained left ankle in the second quarter.
Lebron’s ankle injury vs the Pelicans pic.twitter.com/7veCwOXaGJ
— hoops bot (@hoops_bot) March 28, 2022
Here is another angle showing the apparent severity of James’ ankle turn.
With a relatively healthy LeBron, there was always hope. But this could be the end of our season right here. pic.twitter.com/6C4VeZcFSy
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) March 28, 2022
Though James ultimately played through the injury, he expressed concern about his ankle afterwards. The former MVP called his pain “horrible” and said that he had no idea how he finished the game.
“I have no idea how I finished the game,” LeBron James says, calls the pain “horrible.” https://t.co/IBCFciUUGt
— Bill Oram (@billoram) March 28, 2022
The loss was a yet another new low for the Lakers this season as it dropped them to tenth place in the West. The Pelicans, who are now ninth, officially clinched the season tiebreaker over the Lakers. The San Antonio Spurs, who are just one game back of the Lakers now as well and could bump them out of the play-in tournament altogether, also hold the tiebreaker over the Lakers at the moment by virtue of conference record.
Lakers were already down Anthony Davis, and now James is potentially hobbled as well as the team sits at 31-43. While it is not the same ankle that derailed James’ season last year, we have officially entered into DEFCON 1 territory for the Lakers with less than ten games left in the regular season.
Photo: Jan 21, 2022; Orlando, Florida, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) against the Orlando Magic during the first quarter at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
