clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Can LeBron James get back to 100% healthy during the playoffs?

Can LeBron James return to close to his pre-injury self during the playoffs? Let’s take a closer look at a potential target timeline for him to do so.

2021 Play-In Tournament - Golden State Warriors v Los Angeles Lakers Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images

Including the Lakers’ thrilling victory over the Warriors in the play-in game earlier this week, LeBron James has been back for three games now following his six game hiatus due to the ankle soreness that followed his initial return from the right high ankle sprain that initially sidelined him for weeks.

Now, for the record, James has repeatedly said he’s all right to play.

“Oh I’m good. Ready to go on Sunday,” James said at practice on Friday.

But while he may be “good,” through these last three games, it’s become abundantly clear that James isn’t 100% — if you watched my last video assessing his movement through the first two games, I estimated he’s near 80% health and fitness — so the key question becomes simple:

Can LeBron get back to 100%, or at least near his pre-injury levels, during this playoff run?

In the following video, I tried to answer just that:

James’ ongoing progress will be critical to the Lakers’ chances to repeat, and I’ll continue to update as I see any pertinent changes or progress in his current trajectory as the NBA playoffs continue.

Dr. Rajpal Brar, DPT has a doctorate in physical therapy from Northern Arizona University, and runs his own in-person and online sports medicine and performance business, 3CB Performance, in West LA and Valencia, CA in which he further combines his movement expertise and fitness training. He also works at a hospital — giving him experience with patients in the immediate healthcare setting and neurological patients (post stroke, post brain injury) — and has been practicing for 4 years. Brar is additionally training at UCLA’s mindful awareness research center (MARC), has a background in youth basketball coaching and analyzes the Lakers from a medical and skills perspective for Silver Screen and Roll and on his own YouTube Channel. You can follow him on Twitter at @3cbPerformance.

Sign up for the newsletter Sign up for the Silver Screen & Roll Daily Roundup newsletter!

A daily roundup of Los Angeles Lakers news from Silver Screen & Roll