LeBron James has had a pretty rocky start to his career with the Los Angeles Lakers. Joining the purple and gold was supposed to cement his legacy but so far it's only tainted it. At Christmas, the team was fourth place in the Western Conference but they quickly hit a decline when James went down with a groin injury. Since returning to action, LeBron hasn't been able to carry his team the way they needed him to and now he will be missing the postseason for the first time since 2005. With only five games left, LeBron has been told by the training staff that he needs to sit the rest of the season.
According to Lakers head coach Luke Walton, James needed a lot of convincing before he agreed to sit out the remaining games.
"He wants to play," Walton said. "My understanding from the medical staff, they finally said, 'Look, it's just not worth it anymore. Let's make sure you have a healthy summer.' So that's the decision that was made, and we'll move forward without him on the floor for the final six."
In 55 games this season, LeBron averaged 27.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 8.3 assists. With those stats, it's clear that James can still put up the numbers. It's just that he needs a team around him that actually has some chemistry.