King James is nearing a return.
LeBron James was reassigned to the Los Angeles Lakers from their G League affiliated, the South Bay Lakers, and will be a full participant in the NBA squad's practice on Monday, ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Sunday.
James completed multiple days of practices and five-on-five sessions this week in the G League and is near his NBA season debut, Charania added.
"He was able to participate in the practice," Lakers coach JJ Redick said Wednesday. "Got up and down a little bit with just some, like, warm-up transition drills and progressed to five-on-five in the halfcourt, and got, I think about 12 to 15 possessions of live five-on-five contact.”
The 40-year-old superstar is yet to make his debut for his 23rd season due to sciatica, a lower-body nerve issue on his right side.
James averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists in 70 games last season.
The NBA's all-time leading scorer, James has won four championships, also winning Finals MVP each time. He also has four MVP awards and has been an All-NBA selection in every season of his career except for his rookie year, while spending time with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Lakers.
The Lakers are 10-4 in James' absence, with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves picking up the slack, averaging 34.4 and 28.3 points, respectively.
