LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers has missed the first eight games of the 2025-26 NBA season due to right sciatica. The four-time NBA champion had to deal with the setback before the start of training camp, which prevented him from attending the subsequent events. According to initial reports, James’ return would be around mid-November.
On Wednesday, ESPN’s Shams Charania gave a positive update on James’ recovery. Without the star forward, the Lakers have done well, thanks to the star duo of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. The star backcourt pair of LA has led the team to a 6-2 record.
The next phase of James’ recovery was discussed by Charania on ESPN’s “NBA Countdown.”
“LeBron James has been working out individually and I’m told the next step for him is 5-on-5 live play,” Charania said. “He will not be travelling on the Lakers’ upcoming five-game, week long road trip that starts in Atlanta this weekend.
Reporting for ESPN NBA Countdown on the next steps in LeBron James' Lakers season debut process: pic.twitter.com/2wYSAhdOuL
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 6, 2025
“So, it’s unclear whether he’s gonna be able to get that live action when the team is on the road, potentially doing it with the South Bay team. Or do the Lakers and LeBron wait for the team to get back on Nov. 16th and then the live play process can begin then. I was told todat that Lakers’ personnel are still operating under the belief James’ debut will be around mid-November. But this is unchartered territory.
“He turns 41 next month, he’s in his 23rd record NBA season.”
This is the first time that James has been sidelined at the start of the regular season. The setback that he has suffered has broken his streak of playing in every season opener, which he has done for the past 22 seasons.
Another LeBron James streak could end soon
LeBron James has had a lot of streaks throughout his two-decade-long career. His streak of playing every season opener has already been broken. Now, there’s another streak that’s at stake. James’ 21-year All-NBA selection streak may come to an end, according to NBA insider Brett Siegel.
It’s already been confirmed that James will miss the Lakers’ game on Wednesday against the San Antonio Spurs. That makes it nine straight missed games for the four-time MVP. On top of that, the team will have a five-game road trip next week, which the NBA star won’t be a part of.
That means he’s only allowed to miss three more games this season to be eligible for the NBA awards. This puts his 21-season streak in jeopardy. Because of the league’s 56-game rule, missing more games could end James’ record.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
