LeBron James Back for Lakers After Missing 13 Games For Foot
After missing the past 13 games, LeBron James returned to the Los Angeles Lakers’ lineup Sunday against the Chicago Bulls.
James has been dealing with a tendon injury in his right foot. He was initially upgraded Saturday to doubtful for Sunday’s game, then Sunday was deemed questionable before testing his foot and being cleared to play.
James came off the bench, entering at the 6:32 mark of the first quarter. True to form, James still did his customary chalk toss at the scorer’s table before entering the game.
It is just the second time in 1,414 career games that he has played as a reserve. The first was Dec. 11, 2007, when he sacrificed his starting spot for Anderson Varejao, who had been in a contract dispute with the Cleveland Cavaliers, so that Varejao would be cheered with the starters and protected from fans booing him when he checked in off the bench.
The Lakers have gone 8-5 since James went down, reaching .500 for the first time all season with a 116-111 win over Oklahoma City on Friday and climbing to No. 8 in the Western Conference standings.
James, 38, has missed 27 games this season — tied for the most games he has missed in a season in his career because of injury.
