LeBron James returns from absence, foot injury to help lead Lakers past Grizzlies

On By Littum

After , LeBron James returned to the lineup Sunday night and led the Los Angeles Lakers to a victory as if nothing had happened.

James finished just shy of a triple-double and seemed largely back to his old self in the Lakers’ 116-110 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at Crypto.com Arena. He had 18 points, eight assists and eight rebounds in the win.

James first missed last Sunday’s win over the Portland Trail Blazers with a broken foot. James then missed time in practice last week, including one that was simply labeled “personal reasons.” He also didn’t play in Friday’s loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, and coach JJ Redick didn’t seem to have an idea when he would be back on the floor.

But before the game, Redick revealed that he and James talked about the star taking time off to recover from his left foot injury — something that sounded like it was needed.

“I played 15 (seasons) and was emotionally, mentally, physically drained, fried. I put everything I had into this game,” Redick said, . “I had nothing left. For guys like him and (Chris Paul), the Tom Bradys of the world, the Roger Federers of the world, it’s hard to fathom having that level of sustained excellence for that long because of the toll it takes on all of you, not just your body.”

The Lakers, who built a 20-point lead at one point in the third quarter, looked like they were going to cruise to a dominant victory Sunday night. But the game almost completely turned around when big star Anthony Davis went down with a shoulder injury in that period after colliding with Grizzlies center Zach Edey.

Davis left the game briefly for the locker room, and the Grizzlies almost immediately cut the game to single digits. They ended the third quarter on a 16-5 run after Davis left the game.

But Davis returned to the game in the fourth quarter to close out the wire-to-wire victory. He matched season highs with 40 points and 16 rebounds for the Lakers. Austin Reaves finished with 19 points and eight assists. Those two and James were the only Lakers players to hit double figures.

Jaren Jackson Jr. led the Grizzlies with 25 points in the loss. Ja Morant finished with 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and Edey finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for Memphis, which is now 18-9 on the season.

The Lakers improved to 14-12 with the win, just their second in their last six games. While his sudden absence may have been concerning, James insisted after the game that he was in a good place health-wise. After taking a week off, and with the Lakers not scheduled to play again until Thursday when they take on the Sacramento Kings, he should be good to go.

“I’m pretty good,” James said, . “It’s very rare during a season where you can take advantage of a schedule and I was able to do that over the last week.”