Overview
- Head coach JJ Redick said James is set to work out with the South Bay Lakers later this week, after clarifying an earlier comment that it was happening Monday.
- Los Angeles announced on Nov. 6 that James was cleared for contact and would be reevaluated in 1–2 weeks, and he did not join the current five-game road trip to continue ramping up.
- Multiple outlets indicate a return in the mid-November window is plausible, with Nov. 18 at home vs. the Jazz identified as the earliest potential game if progress continues.
- The Lakers have started 8–3 without James, with Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves powering the offense and becoming the first teammates to top 200 points and 50 assists each through their first seven games.
- Dončić said, “We can’t wait” for James’ comeback, while some commentators have floated a bench role to preserve current chemistry, a suggestion not endorsed by the team.