January 7, 2026
ANALYSISJames will be sidelined for the second leg of the Lakers' back-to-back set Wednesday while working through left foot joint arthritis and right sciatica, and his next opportunity to play is Friday against the Bucks. It'll be the 17th game missed of the season for James, who would be ineligible for awards if he were to be sidelined for one more regular-season game.
Jarred Vanderbilt,
Nick Smith and
Dalton Knecht are candidates to enter the Lakers' starting five in James' absence.