When can LeBron James return? Looking at a probable timeline for the LA Lakers' talisman's return timeline after injury

The Los Angeles Lakers continued to struggle during the opening month of the 2021-22 NBA season. Basketball fans continue to wonder when LeBron James will return to action. The Lakers announced last week that James would be out for at least one week, as the 36-year-old is currently dealing with an abdominal strain. So far this year, LeBron James has missed four of the Lakers 10 games this season.

The opening month of the NBA season is a popular time for teams to try and find their groove. Unfortunately some teams struggle out of the gate and find themselves quickly trying to get back on the right track. It hasn't been the start to the year the Los Angeles Lakers had hoped for. The team currently sits at .500 for the season at 5-5, but are coming off two disappointing losses in a row.

When can LeBron James possibly return?

The basketball world waits for the return of Los Angeles Laker star LeBron James

That's the million dollar question on everyone's mind at the moment. The Lakers had originally reported that LeBron James was expected to be out for at least a week. Under that timeline, it would have put LeBron on schedule to potentially return during the Lakers' five-game homestand, which starts tonight against the Charlotte Hornets. The Lakers have some challenging opponents on their upcoming schedule, including the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls at home, followed by games on the road against the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics.

Realistically, it seemed as if James was most likely going to be returning to the court this upcoming weekend. The Lakers are set to have games Friday against the Minnesota Timberwolves and Sunday against the San Antonio Spurs. But if the Lakers want to be cautious, they could also look to keep LeBron out until the following Monday, which would feature a tough home game against the Chicago Bulls.

But some new information has been pointed out by Bill Oram of The Athletic, who covers the Los Angeles Lakers. Oram brought forth an interesting social media post from the Lakers' former head strength and conditioning coach, Dr. Tim DiFrancesco.

“Now the owner of TD Athlete’s Edge, a training and rehab operation near Boston, DiFrancesco explained in a post Saturday morning that the injury is one that can occur with the overextension of the torso combined with extreme force — such as a powerful serve in tennis or a tomahawk dunk in basketball,” Oram wrote.

“Recovery time? Four to eight weeks for even a minor strain, according to DiFrancesco.”

That timeline would suddenly become a serious eye-opener for the Los Angeles Lakers organization and its fans. For a team that has had a number of up-and-down performances to start the year, having one of the game's best players out for a month compared to a week is a massive difference. DiFrancesco went into more detail about how the severity of the injury would determine the timeline, but stated that most minor strains could still take two to six weeks.

If the new speculation is true, it would put the Lakers in a tough situation. Let's just say for now that LeBron James misses around six weeks of play. That would set him to return around December 15th. The team definitely has a number of difficult opponents on their upcoming schedule, so it's going to be fascinating to keep an eye on how this situation with LeBron continues to develop. If James is out for around a month, he will be returning in time for an upcoming stand that would include a road game against the Chicago Bulls, as well as home showdowns against the Phoenix Suns and Brooklyn Nets.