LeBron James, Lakers
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LeBron James reacts during a Lakers game as the team makes a surprising decision about his workload.
The Los Angeles Lakers are about to test the limits of modern NBA load management.
With the Denver Nuggets set to miss three-time MVP Nikola Jokić for at least four weeks because of a knee injury, the Lakers suddenly have a chance to gain separation in the Western Conference standings. And they are doing so with a calculated — and unconventional — gamble: putting a 41-year-old LeBron James back into back-to-back games.
According to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, that plan is now in motion.
“He’s going to play tonight in New Orleans,” McMenamin said Tuesday on NBA Today, “and then sources tell me they’re going to take it game by game and see how his body feels. That is a step forward from what he’s been through thus far this season, when they just ruled out back-to-backs.”
The Lakers play the Pelicans on Tuesday night, followed by the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday — a pairing that would normally invite rest. This time, the organization is moving in the opposite direction.
Lakers Shift LeBron’s Usage — and Now His Availability
James, who turned 41 in December, has appeared in only 17 of the Lakers’ first 33 games. A 14-game absence early in the season was caused by sciatica, followed by foot management and cautious scheduling that eliminated him from every back-to-back.
His workload has also been deliberately reduced.
James is averaging just 15.4 field-goal attempts per game, the lowest mark of his career. His usage rate, 26.6 percent, also sits at a career low — trailing both Luka Dončić (37.9) and Austin Reaves (28.3).
That decline is not deterioration.
It is by design.
The Lakers have intentionally shifted James into a more off-ball role, preserving his body for a postseason run and empowering Dončić as the offense’s central engine. James has not only accepted that evolution — he has leaned into it.
“I have to be able to change the landscape of how I play according to how our team wants to play,” James told reporters. “So picking spots and figuring out ways I can still be productive to help us play winning basketball.”
Why the Lakers Are Willing to Risk It Now
The timing is not accidental.
The Nuggets’ injury to Jokić has temporarily reshaped the Western Conference race. Denver is in survival mode. Los Angeles sees opportunity.
The Lakers have won two straight games — both against Memphis — after a 1–4 stumble. With Reaves sidelined several more weeks because of a Grade 2 calf strain, James has been asked to fill a hybrid role: part scorer, part organizer, part stabilizer.
In Sunday’s 120–114 win over Memphis, James scored 26 points on 14 shots, added 10 assists, and committed only one turnover.
“Just understand how precious the ball is,” James said. “Especially when your usage rate is a little bit down. You can’t afford to be turning the ball over a lot if you barely got the ball in your hand.”
It was a masterclass in efficiency — and a reminder that James still controls games even when he is no longer dominating possessions.
Redick’s Long-Term Plan Is Becoming Present-Tense
Lakers coach JJ Redick made clear earlier this season that building James back into consecutive-night availability was always part of the plan.
“We’re going to build him up, hopefully, to be able to play in back-to-backs,” Redick said in late November. “That’s the goal. But every back-to-back is a case-by-case. That’s just the reality of the NBA right now.”
Now, the case has arrived.
The Lakers are not abandoning caution — they are recalibrating it.
McMenamin reported in September that James’ representatives had urged the team to be “overly cautious” with his health. The team listened. They banked rest early. They reduced his usage. They protected his body.
Now, with the standings tightening and the conference shifting, they are calling on him again.
Evolution, Not Regression
This is not the Lakers pushing an aging star beyond his limits.
It is the Lakers trusting that their careful management has earned them this moment.
James is no longer the nightly volume scorer he once was. He is something rarer: a player who can still decide games while touching the ball less, moving more strategically, and conserving energy for when it matters.
That is not a demotion.
It is evolution.
And in a season where opportunity is as fleeting as health, the Lakers are betting that evolution is strong enough to carry them through the grind of January — even if it means asking a 41-year-old legend to do something the franchise has spent the past several years protecting him from.
Play again tomorrow.
Because the unforgiving West isn’t waiting.