LeBron James provides injury update as NBA star appears to show positive signs during Lakers vs Knicks

LEBRON James is almost back to the hardwood for the Los Angeles Lakers as he steadily improves from his foot injury.

The 38-year-old appeared on the sidelines last night without a walking boot.

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James has been seen wearing the boot since he sustained the foot injury vs the Mavericks on February 26, and it looks like he is close to returning to action later this month.

James was back with the team after about a week away, and Lakers head coach Darvin Ham felt that it was good for him to “unplug a little bit.”

“Everything is going according to plan,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

Ham’s update should come as no surprise.

The Lakers provided a timeline at the start of the month stating that James was expected to be re-evaluated in three weeks.

That would put his target return date somewhere near the end of March.

James has struggled to stay healthy this season, missing 21 games, and LA is just 24-23 when he is in the lineup.

The Lakers bolstered their roster at the deadline by acquiring D’Angelo Russell, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Malik Beasley and being able to ship out Russell Westbrook, but improvements still need to be made.

During James’ absence, the Lakers have fought to stay above .500% going 5-3 since the injury but suffered their most recent 112-108 loss Sunday at home against the Knicks.

With the loss to the Knicks, LA currently holds the 11th spot in the Western Conference (33-35) and sits outside the play-in game.

Los Angeles has 14 games left on their schedule and will face the New Orleans Pelicans on the road Tuesday and then the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.

And while there’s hope the NBA’s all-time leading scorer can return this season, the Lakers must start winning and qualify for the playoffs first.