NBA Injury Report Week 13: LeBron return date, Cousins Warriors debut and more

The 2018/19 NBA season has now passed the halfway point, and as the season approaches the All-Star Weekend, teams around the league are having to deal with a number of injuries.

The Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors are among the teams dealing with star players being out injured, and here we will take a look at the return dates of a number of stars from around the NBA.

Chris Paul - Hamstring Injury - Late January/ Early February

Chris Paul injured his hamstring back in late-December, as the Rockets point guard immediately clutched his left leg after Derrick Jones Jr. knocked the ball loose. The Rockets initially hoped that Paul would only miss two-three weeks, however, this time window has now passed, and CP3 remains out.

Last week, Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni explained that the team is being careful with Paul, and revealed that he would not return until the end of January at the earliest.

Ricky Rubio - Hamstring Injury - January 23rd (Earliest)

Ricky Rubio made an excellent start to the Jazz's 112-102 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, however, after scoring nine points in five minutes, Rubio left the court with a hamstring injury.

The point guard has since undergone an MRI scan, which revealed that Rubio would miss a further two weeks of action. When comparing the Jazz's schedule to the Spaniards return timeframe, Rubio looks set for a return against the Denver Nuggets on January 23rd.

Aron Baynes - Broken Hand - Should return this week

Just after returning to the Celtics starting lineup ahead of Al Horford, Baynes fractured the fourth metacarpal in his left hand. The center sustained the injury while attempting to deflect a pass during the Celtics December game against the Phoenix Suns.

Just over a week ago, Baynes stated that he would be ready to return in 10 days time, and when looking at the Celtics schedule, Baynes should be in line to return either against the Raptors on Wednesday, or the Grizzlies on Friday.

DeMarcus Cousins - Achilles injury - set to return on Friday

Back in January 2018, DeMarcus Cousins had just recorded a triple-double against the Houston Rockets, and his Pelicans team looked in good shape to contend in the playoffs. Nevertheless, in the closing moments of the game, Cousins went down injured and was soon diagnosed with a torn left Achilles.

Cousins has not played a single minute of action since, although he did sign a one-year deal with the Golden State Warriors last summer. The 28-year-old has stepped up his comeback in recent months, and last week, Warriors coach Steve Kerr revealed that Cousins will be making his debut for the team against the LA Clippers on January 18th.

Despite playing his former team (Pelicans) on Wednesday, the Warriors are adamant that Cousins will play no part in the game, so Friday's game in LA will be the first time that we see the Warriors five All-Stars take to the court together.

LeBron James - Groin Injury - Should return later this week

Los Angeles Lakers v Golden State Warriors

LeBron James' groin injury is a story that is currently dominating the talk of the NBA. The Lakers superstar has been out of action since injuring his groin against the Golden State Warriors on Christmas Day, and Luke Walton's men have struggled in his absence. The Lakers last night lost to James' former Cavs team, who coming into the game, had won just eight games this season.

Nevertheless, there appears to be good news regarding LeBron's return to the court. ESPN has reported that the 34-year-old's groin injury is progressing well, and James has been cleared to increase on-court functional basketball movements.

The Lakers have also stated that they will provide another status update regarding James on Wednesday, and James could potentially play restricted minutes against the OKC Thunder on Thursday evening, or against the Rockets on Saturday.