On Tuesday night, Lakers star LeBron James entered the league’s COVID-19 protocols for a positive test and the expectation was that he could miss a week or more before returning to the court.
However, on Thursday, James apparently produced the sufficient negative test results for the second consecutive day following his one positive test, and is cleared to play in the crosstown matchup with the Clippers on Friday night, per Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Just in: Lakers star LeBron James has been cleared from health and safety protocols to return on Friday vs. Clippers, after testing positive but since registering multiple negative COVID-19 tests, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 2, 2021
James had voiced his frustration with the situation he found himself in, as the league tests came back positive, but others rapid tests came back negative on Tuesday. LeBron had been asymptomatic, and apparently his eight tests with the league from Wednesday and Thursday all returned negative, allowing him to return to the floor after just one game’s absence thanks to being in the league’s vaccinated player protocols.
The following was released by the NBA pic.twitter.com/Ct60rHwLLv
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) December 2, 2021
LeBron James has been tested rigorously since returning to L.A. from Sacramento – he’s had eight Covid tests since Saturday, all of which have come back negative, sources told ESPN. His test in Sacramento was a false positive and James will return to the court Friday against LAC
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) December 2, 2021
James has had multiple rounds of negative test results since returning to Los Angeles from Sacramento on Tuesday evening, multiple sources said. It appears the initial positive test ultimately was inconclusive result. https://t.co/p9FO9zUv1r
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 2, 2021
That raises the intrigue for the all-L.A. battle on Friday, although it still won’t be broadcast on national TV after ESPN flexed it out of the primetime slot in favor of the Warriors-Suns rematch of last week’s thrilling battle between the West’s two top teams. At 12-11, the Lakers are sixth in the West, a half game ahead of the Clippers in what is a crowded middle of the playoff pack, and while it’s not a battle of teams playing at their best at the moment, every win is critical for West playoff hopefuls when they play each other.