The Los Angeles Lakers appear to be officially throwing in the towel on the season.
According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, LeBron James will have a minutes restriction going forward and won't play in back-to-backs.
James missed 17 consecutive games earlier this season while he dealt with a groin strain. The Lakers All-Star forward returned on Jan. 31 and has played in all but one game on the team's schedule since being inserted back into the lineup.
In his first year with Los Angeles, James has put together averages of 27.1 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 8.0 assists while shooting 34.9 percent from beyond the arc. In Wednesday's 115-99 loss to the Denver Nuggets, James scored 31 points on 13-of-22 shooting while also dishing out seven assists and securing seven rebounds.
James just passed Michael Jordan for fourth place on the NBA's all-time scoring list on Wednesday night after trailing by just 13 points prior to the Lakers' game against the Nuggets.
This news comes with the Lakers floundering in the standings in a big way. Los Angeles has dropped four consecutive games while also losing six of its last seven contests -- even with James in the lineup. The Lakers currently sit in 11th place in the Western Conference with a 30-35 record and trail the Los Angeles Clippers by 6.5 games for the final playoff spot with 17 games remaining on L.A.'s regular-season schedule.