LeBron James suffered a left groin injury vs. Celtics and is expected to miss at least 1-to-2 weeks.
The Los Angeles Lakers' eight-game win streak ended Saturday with a 111-101 loss to the Boston Celtics. However, their biggest concern isn't the defeat -- it's LeBron James' health.
According to Shams Charania of ESPN, James is expected to miss at least 1-to-2 weeks with a groin strain.
James will wait for the groin injury to calm down over the next 24 hours and receive another evaluation, per ESPN's sources.
But there's positivity that injury won't affect LeBron long-term, unlike in 2018 when LeBron James had that groin tear, he did not hear a pop last night in Boston, according to Charania.
"Not much concern, day by day, see if it gets better, take the proper measurements and see," LeBron said post-game.
The 40-year-old immediately thought back to his Christmas Day injury in 2018, when he felt a pop in his groin and missed 17 straight games with a tear. This time, he doesn't believe it's as severe -- knocking on the wooden locker behind him to avoid jinxing it.
"It's not as bad," he reassured after the Celtics game.
In the post-game conference, coach JJ Redick said there is "obviously concern" with LeBron's groin strain, but he clarified that he doesn't have any additional information.
Injury episode:
James exited with 6:44 remaining in the fourth quarter and did not return. He finished with 22 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists.
For the season, he's averaging 25.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 8.5 assists over 58 games. The LA Lakers, currently the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, hold a 40-22 record.
Los Angeles now faces a tough stretch, with six games in the next eight days -- including two matchups each against the Denver Nuggets and Milwaukee Bucks.