LeBron James sits out Lakers’ first practice as part of unprecedented load management plan

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EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — LeBron James didn’t participate in the Lakers’ first practice of the season, JJ Redick said, as the team and the 23-year-old veteran attempt to best manage a situation there’s no precedent for.

James, who will turn 41 in December, is the league’s all-time leader in minutes played, and this season, should pass Robert Parrish for most games played in league history.

“I think it’s probably a little big longer of a ramp up leading into opening night for him,” Redick said. “Just obviously in Year 23, it’s uncharted territory here. So, I felt, and in talking with performance and in talking with (James’ trainer) Mike (Mancias) and LeBron, like probably did too much last year in camp, which was great for me as a first-year head coach to get buy-in from him. But it’ll be a slower process with him leading into the first game. He’s obviously got 22 years so far of wear and tear on the body and he’s dealing with a little bit of nerve irritation in the glute.

“So, we’re just playing the long game with LeBron.”

Marcus Smart (Achilles tendinopathy) and Gabe Vincent (knee management) were also limited on the team’s first day, with Redick saying Vincent should be full-go by the end of this week and Smart ready by the next.

James said Monday that the physical challenges of playing 23 years in the NBA are what drives him to continue competing.

“The things that still push me is the fact that the love of the game is still high. The love of the process is even higher. So that’s what continues to push me to play this game. I mean, it’s really that simple,” he said. “Me training and working on my body and trying to get my body as close to 100 percent as possible every year, it’s something that’s like — it’s a beautiful thing for me. Just continue to challenge to see how well I can push myself to play the game at a high level, recover at a high level, be able to sleep better, mentally prepare, try to stay sharp throughout the course of a long season.”

To get James to the point of staying sharp for as long as possible as late into the season as possible, the Lakers decided to step off the gas here early.

“I don’t think there’s a proven way to handle someone who has this much mileage, this many minutes, been asked to do so many things on both ends of the court,” Redick said. “We asked a lot of him last year, we asked a lot of him to start the year in camp, so it’s just working as a partnership and trying to figure it out.”

James is on board with the plan, Redick said. The hope is that James will play at some point this preseason, but having James ready for opening night on Oct. 21 is the main goal.

(Photo: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

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