The Lakers find themselves navigating uncharted waters with LeBron James sidelined to start the season by sciatica.
The veteran star’s absence has prompted comparisons to the career-ending spinal struggles of another Lakers icon: Steve Nash.
Nash recently weighed in, drawing a stark, personal connection between James‘ nerve woes and the kind of back trouble that ultimately ended his own time on the court.
LeBron, 40, was ruled out for at least three to four weeks after being diagnosed with inflammation of the sciatic nerve in his glute.
As the Lakers manage his recovery, Nash, a Hall of Famer who himself battled debilitating nerve and spinal issues in his final days in purple and gold, offered perspective grounded in experience.
“LeBron is physically much more capable than I am,” Nash said. “I think that he’ll bounce back here and he’ll be able to have a good and robust season. But even if he didn’t have sciatica, like LeBron doesn’t need to play 82 games. LeBron doesn’t need to be flying day one. I don’t mind this for the Lakers at all.”
Though Nash did not publicly confirm he dealt with classic sciatica at the time, his late-career years were marked by chronic nerve irritation and back degeneration.
However, in a 2014 open letter he wrote: “I suffer from sciatica and after games I often can’t sit in the car on the drive home … Most nights I’m bothered by severe cramping in both calves while I sleep … the list goes on somewhat comically.”
The fact that he can draw this parallel now suggests how closely aligned LeBron‘s current plight may be with Nash’s fade-out.
Head coach JJ Redick, suggesting a cautious approach with James, has emphasized that LeBron is “on his own timeline.”
With nerve-related injuries notoriously unpredictable, that timeline could stretch longer than the Lakers are comfortable admitting.
The stakes beyond the injury
Losing LeBron at the outset puts Lakers leadership and roster construction under intense scrutiny. Last season, James averaged 24.4 points, 8.2 assists, and 7.8 rebounds across 70 games, production the Lakers sorely miss when he’s off the floor.
Without him, roles will shift, minutes will open up, and the Lakers will need to lean heavily on Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and other supporting pieces to keep the ship afloat.
But the bigger question looms: can a 40-year-old superstar rebound from nerve inflammation in a way that preserves longevity?
Nash‘s decline offers a cautionary blueprint. While Nash‘s symptoms didn’t appear overnight, his struggles steadily escalated until they became unsustainable.
The specter of a slow slide, rather than a clean return, now hangs over James‘ 23rd season.
Redick and the Lakers medical staff face a delicate balancing act: push James to return too soon, and risk lingering damage; delay him too long, and the team’s identity loses its linchpin.
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