"Last year I was probably the MVP of the season” - LeBron James opens up on his injury struggles

NBA and Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has opened up about his injury struggles in the last couple of years as King James has been constantly being hampered by injuries to his knee, abdomen and ankle.

Speaking to a room full of journalists at a press conference, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar opened up about how he was probably the leading candidate for the MVP league honors last season before an unfortunate ankle injury. James said:

"Last year I was probably the MVP of the season until I got my foot rolled up on a high ankle sprain and came back for the Play-In game but I was not the same."

King James genuinely believes that he had a shot at winning the MVP award for the fifth time last season, and he had the numbers to back it up as the superstar was averaging 25.4 points, 7.9 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game while shooting 51.3 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from beyond the arc. Those are MVP caliber numbers.

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LeBron James' injury-laden season

King James against the Phoenix Suns

LeBron James, over the years, has built up a reputation for being an iron man as he continues to defy age and logic with his incredible performances at the age of 37. King James was drafted into the NBA in 2003 by the Cleveland Cavaliers and has played at the highest level for almost the last two decades.

However, Father Time does seem to be catching up with James, as he has missed 26 games this season and the Lakers have lost most of them. Abdomen and knee issues have plagued him this term as James has to be even more careful with the way he maintains his body with all the mileage accrued over the years, playing at the highest level and now the ankle also seems to be troubling him.

On top of this, he has also been struggling with knee issues akin to the ankle injury he suffered last season, which will in all likelihood take the entire offseason to recover from. He has had to handle the scoring burden and in recent times has had to play power forward and center in the absence of Anthony Davis. The acquisition of Russell Westbrook was intended to ease the workload on James but has ended up increasing it.

There were many calls to shut down LeBron James for the rest of the season. Many believe this Lakers roster is going nowhere and there is no point in jeopardizing the health of James and the future of the team. Now that the Lakers have crashed out, King James can focus on getting healthy over the summer.