Lakers Injury Report: LeBron James Mystery Ailment Could be Cause of Scoring Slump

Outside of one big game, the Los Angeles superstar has been putting up weirdly pedestrian numbers this year.

Oct 28, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) passes the ball against Phoenix Suns forward Royce O'Neale (00) during the second half at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

20-time All-NBA Los Angeles Lakers combo forward LeBron James' record-tying 22nd season has gotten off to an encouraging start for his team, although he has had a rough go of it individually, scoring under 20 points in two of his first four contests. The Lakers, however, have won three of those four contests — the first three, marking the first time since L.A.'s 57-win 2011-12 season that the club has opened up the season with three consecutive victories.

Now, there appears to be an explanation as to why the four-time league MVP has been less than red-hot as a scorer this year (although his field goal and 3-point shooting lines are still pretty good).

Per Jovan Buha of The Athletic, James has been "sniffling and nasally" since Friday.

The 6-foot-9 phenom, who's been the league's oldest player since the start of last season and is months away from turning 40, is averaging a career-low 20.0 points on .446/.391/.684 shooting splits, along with 7.5 assists, 7.0 rebounds and 0.8 blocks a night.

James has ceded space in L.A.'s offense to All-NBA Second Team center Anthony Davis, who has at long last become the fulcrum of the club's offense — after long being the team's defensive anchor. The nine-time All-Star big man, 31, is averaging a career-best 32.8 points on .550/.286/.804 shooting splits, plus 12.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 2.5 blocks and 1.5 steals a night.

Beyond Davis' ascent, however, two of the Lakers' other high-upside, non-All-Star contributors appear to have taken an early leap this year, in starting combo forward Rui Hachimura and starting shooting guard Austin Reaves.

Reaves, a 6-foot-5 Oklahoma product, is averaging 19.3 points while slashing .547/.480/.700, along with 7.0 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.5 blocks. All those numbers represent career highs (aside from his free throw shooting percentage), though it seems likely the numbers will decrease if his minutes drop down from their current average of 36.0.

Hachimura, a 6-foot-8 Gonzaga alum, has been surprisingly aggressive in looking for his offense across these first four bouts. He's averaging 17.5 points (also a career high) on an unsustainable slash line of .439/.615/800, 7.8 boards, 2.0 dimes, 0.8 swipes and 0.5 rejections.

The Lakers are currently employing a nine-man rotation under new head coach JJ Redick. Beyond the club's top four players, starting point guard D'Angelo Russell has been his usual serviceable self. Rookie shooting guard Dalton Knecht has made an instant impact off the bench, 3-and-D swingman Max Christie has submitted competent two-way play, reserve center Jaxson Hayes is currently Anthony Davis' backup by default, and defense-first point guard Gabe Vincent has been Redick's go-to perimeter defender with Jarred Vanderbilt out. How the returns of Vanderbilt and Christian Wood will impact Redick's rotations remains to be seen, but the team's top four has clearly emerged.

More Lakers: Anthony Davis Still in Awe of LeBron James Despite Years of Being Teammates