Lakers star LeBron James to miss start of season with nerve pain

Khobi Price, The Orange County Register on Oct 9, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The Lakers announced on Thursday afternoon that LeBron James will be sidelined for at least 3-4 weeks because of nerve pain, meaning the 40-year-old star forward won’t be available for the start of the team’s 2025-26 season.

The team’s statement, which was released after practice concluded, said James will be reevaluated in about 3-4 weeks because of sciatica on his right side, and that any further updates will be provided at that time.

The timeline means the Lakers will play five to nine games before LeBron is reevaluated, including the Oct. 21 regular-season opener against the Golden State Warriors at Crypto.com Arena.

James had been a modified participant in practices, mainly doing individual work, after Lakers coach JJ Redick said James had been dealing with nerve irritation in his glute, which had also sidelined him from the team’s first two preseason games last weekend.