Whether they want to admit it or not, LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are in trouble. Last night, they came back from the All-Star break and suffered a resounding 128-110 against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors.

Although the King played 14 minutes on Sunday at Indianapolis, he was ruled out for the game at San Francisco. The second consecutive game missed with the Lakers due to injury (ankle).

The Los Angeles Lakers have currently a 30-27 record in the NBA and hold the No.9 spot in the Western Conference. All season, they have sailed smoothly in this play-in zone, believing that things will ‘magically’ change if they clinch a ticket to the playoffs.

However, they’re currently in a 10-game stretch in which Darvin Ham will face eight teams with a better record than the Lakers. It’s true that there’s a four-game advantage over the Utah Jazz (no.11), but, without LeBron James, the road might be harder than expected.

LeBron James missed the game against the Warriors due to injury (Getty Images)

When will LeBron James return from injury?

According to Darvin Ham, LeBron James will return on Friday night when the Los Angeles Lakers host the San Antonio Spurs. This was the coach’s statement after the loss against the Golden State Warriors. “We’ll get an official word Friday morning and see, but in all likelihood, he should be out there tomorrow.”

James has to be back as soon as possible in the starting lineup considering the brutal schedule ahead for the Lakers: San Antonio, Phoenix, Clippers, Washington, Denver, Oklahoma City, Sacramento, Milwaukee and Minnesota.