When the Philadelphia 76ers take the court Thursday night in Toronto against the Raptors, LeBron James won’t be on the court.
It’ll be the third game James misses this season due to injury.
The 76ers have done their best to manage James’ workload in his first season in Philly. Considering that he’s 41 years old and has played in the NBA more than anyone has in the league’s history, that’s a fair approach.
It just means that on some nights, certain fanbases miss out on the chance to see King James take the court.
Why Isn’t LeBron James Playing Tonight?
James is out on Thursday night due to injury.
The 76ers ruled him out earlier in the day on the NBA’s official injury report, which lists James as being out for lower back and sciatica injury management.
That’s the same reason that has been given in each of the first two instances in which James didn’t play this season.
The difference this time: This isn’t a back-to-back.
The first two times James sat out this season, it was on one leg of when the Sixers had a game on consecutive days.
This time, the 76ers played on Tuesday, then this game is on Thursday, and then they play again on Sunday.
That raises at least a little bit of concern as to whether LeBron is in need of a rest more than normal — if something has flared up or acted up — or whether this is really just the 76ers continuing to be cautious.
It’s fair to be careful with James. It just always has interesting implications when that’s the approach they take.
Joel Embiid Question
When the 76ers ruled James out, the status of center Joel Embiid was still in question.
Embiid sat out the same two games James sat out earlier this season, but as mentioned, those were part of back-to-back sets.
This time it’s a standalone game with a day off before it and two days off after it. That could change the equation for Embiid.
Regardless, it’s clear that the 76ers are playing the long game here with their aging stars.
Why Isn’t LeBron James Playing Tonight? What to Know About 76ers Injury