On Thursday, the Los Angeles Lakers announced that LeBron James will [miss the start of the regular season](https://lakeshowlife.com/lebron-james-injury-lakers-next-move-painfully-obvious) due to sciatica on his right side. He'll be re-evaluated in three to four weeks, but that doesn't mean he'll be ready to make his 2025-26 season debut then. ESPN's Tim Bontemps guessed that LeBron will "probably" end up missing six to eight weeks.
Bontemps was on the "Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective" podcast with Windhorst and Tim MacMahon. MacMahon told Bontemps, "Let's not start doing doctor math." Bontemps then reasoned that since LeBron will be re-evaluated in three to four weeks, you have to add on a "minimum" of two weeks to that. He said it could be closer to December before LeBron plays.
Per the Cleveland Clinic, sciatica "happens when irritation, inflammation, pinching, or compression affects one or more nerves that run down your lower back and into your legs. It's usually not a serious condition, and most people with sciatica get better on their own with time and self-care treatments." Pain can range from mild to severe.
Based on that, missing at least six to eight weeks seems like a reasonable expectation.
Bontemps says LeBron could miss six to eight weeks
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LeBron hadn't participated in a full practice since training camp opened. He missed the Lakers' first two preseason games. Earlier this week, ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania reported that the 40-year-old would "likely" miss all of LA's preseason games, but that he was targeting Oct. 21, the Lakers' first regular-season game, for his first game.
Three weeks from yesterday (Thursday), when the Lakers broke the news, is Oct. 30. By that point, Los Angeles will have already played five regular-season games, including two games against Minnesota. If he is re-evaluated in four full weeks (Nov. 6), the Lakers will have played nine regular-season games. Of course, he could also be re-evaluated at some point between then.
What we do know is that LeBron will miss at least the first few games of the season, marking the [first time in his career](https://lakeshowlife.com/lebron-james-injury-officially-end-legendary-streak-lakers-superstar) that he doesn't play in the season-opener. As unfortunate as it is knowing that the streak will come to an end, LeBron's health is the top priority, especially as he enters uncharted territory as an NBA player.
Hopefully, when he's re-evaluated in a few weeks, the Lakers will have a clear idea of when LeBron can return.