It looks like LeBron James is turning on the jets for the playoff push.
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As the Los Angeles Lakers look to clinch a postseason berth for the first time in six years, they'll need a monumental effort from the four-time MVP in order to do so. The Lakers (28-29) are currently three games behind the eighth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers with just 25 games remaining -- with the fourth-toughest remaining schedule in the NBA.
Knowing the challenge ahead, LeBron made it clear he intends to increase his intensity workload for that playoff push, via ESPN's Baxter Holmes.
"It's been activated," the Lakers star said after Wednesday's practice.
"Obviously, we would have loved to have success when I was out, but we didn't, so this is where we [are] right now," said James, who missed 18 games after suffering a groin injury on Dec. 25. "I'm going to be a little bit different a little bit earlier than I would like to be in previous years."
"That's the job, that's our goal," James said of making the playoffs. "It's been our goal from the beginning of the season, and it's still our goal. We're working our tails off to get there."
James had missed 18 games due to a groin injury, with the Lakers going into a free-fall, mustering just a 6-12 record in his absence. Following Christmas Day, the Lakers were in fourth place in the Western Conference. Now they're in just 10th place.
Although James is in the midst of his 16th NBA season, he hasn't shown any clear signs of decline. Since his return from the groin injury, he's actually averaged a triple-double (23.2 points, 11.0 assists and 10.8 rebounds per game). However, the Lakers lost three of those five games by an average margin of 23.0 points per game.
Furthermore, there are still concerns within the organization privately regarding James' health and a groin injury that sidelined him for such a long stretch of games, via Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
The Lakers are privately a little concerned about LeBron. Is he fully healed from the groin strain that cost him a career-worst 18 games? Is he going to pick up his intensity and propel this team back into the playoffs, as he did last year in Cleveland? James, 34, is actually averaging a triple double for the Lakers since his return from injury (23.2 points, 10.8 rebounds, 11.0 assists), but he's just not moving at the same speed nor is he engaging at the point of attack. That fourth-quarter moment in a loss to the Hawks on Wednesday in which Trae Young switched onto LeBron, and instead of taking the much smaller Young off the dribble LeBron casually threw the ball to Brandon Ingram in the corner? There are several examples like this.
The bottom line, it's going to take a monumental effort from James just to lift the Lakers into the postseason. Considering the Lakers have a young nucleus that have never been in this type of "playoff push" before, you can consider the idea of getting the Lakers into the postseason one of LeBron's greatest challenges to date.
If LeBron misses the playoffs this season, it'll not only snap his consecutive Finals appearances streak at eight, but it'll be his first non-playoff season since 2005.
James will look to get the Lakers back on the right track when they host James Harden and the Houston Rockets (10:30 p.m. ET -- watch on fuboTV) at the Staples Center.
