“They’re out indefinitely. I’m not going to have an update for you this week. They’re out indefinitely” – JJ Redick on the injury statuses of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 10: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on during the first half of a game against the Phoenix Suns at Crypto.com Arena on April 10, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers is the oldest player in the NBA, and for the time being, he is set to lead his team in their first-round playoff series against the Houston Rockets, due to the injuries to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
James’ overall stats were down a bit this season, both due to ‘Father Time’ finally catching up to him and the star taking a step back to let Doncic and Reaves take the reins for the Lakers this year. Still, at age 41, James remains extremely impactful, and him continuing his playoff success remains key if Los Angeles wants any chance against Houston in the first round.
But regardless of what happens with the Lakers and James in the postseason, as the oldest player in the league, he had a strong regular season, and one statistic in particular points to why he is still a hot commodity around the NBA, and will be sought after in free agency this summer.
GettyMIAMI, FLORIDA – MARCH 19: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts against the Miami Heat during the third quarter at Kaseya Center on March 19, 2026 in Miami, Florida.
According to the NBA, and confirmed by the Lakers, James led the entire NBA in fast-break points per game this season. He scored an average of 5.7 fast-break points this season, which, out of his 20.9 scoring average, accounts for 27% of his total scoring.
Despite being the oldest player in the league, James continues to have a knack for leading and scoring on the fast-break for a Lakers team that isn’t known for their fast pace of play.
James averaged more fast-break points per game than players like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tyrese Maxey, Donovan Mitchell, and Cade Cunningham, just to name a few, all known for their success running downhill.
Additionally, James recorded a total of 97 dunks this season, despite playing in just 60 games. That number is his most since the 2017-18 year when he was still with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Like his fast-break scoring, James’ dunks this season accounted for nearly 20% of his total field goals made, which is the highest percentage of his 23-year career.
While always known for his prowess on the fast-break and strong dunking ability, it remains a staggering number for so many of his shots to be coming at the rim and on the break, despite at 41-years old.
It’s hard to compare James’ career to that anybody else, and while Vince Carter was playing much fewer minutes in his final season in 2019-20 at age 43, he had only 15 dunks across that year.
James continues to do things never before thought possible at his age, and his fast-break and dunking stats are just part of why he continues to see success in his 23rd NBA season.
James is the key for the Lakers to have any hopes of beating the Rockets in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs.
While there was hope both Doncic and Reaves could return soon, head coach JJ Redick reiterating that the two are ‘out indefinitely’ should signal Los Angeles has no direct timeline for a return or plans of either getting back on the court in at least the next week or two.
“They’re out indefinitely. I’m not going to have an update for you this week. They’re out indefinitely” – JJ Redick on the injury statuses of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves
So for now, it’s James’ role to lead the Lakers past Houston, which remains a tall task, despite the specific problems and issues that have been prevalent for the Rockets all season.
“Can the 41-year-old James turn back the clock and lead his team to postseason glory again? He wasn’t supposed to carry such a burden this season. But just as James was becoming comfortable as the Lakers’ No. 3 option, the two players ahead of him (Doncic and Austin Reaves) sustained injuries,” Zach Kram wrote on James for the Lakers’ upcoming playoff series. “So now James — whose 20.9 PPG represented both a career low for him, and by far the most points in NBA history for a player at his age — will have to dig deep to keep the Lakers alive long enough for Doncic and Reaves to return.”
The Lakers are not favored to beat the Rockets. All 12 ESPN analysts who predicted the outcome of the series had Houston moving on. While it’s James’ team for the time being, if Los Angeles can extend the series, they could get Doncic or Reaves back in time for a game five or six, but that remains to be seen.
Eli Gregorski is a sports journalist covering the NBA for Heavy Sports. He has years of sports writing experience covering the NBA, NFL, college football and basketball, international soccer, and Formula One. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder, where he was the assistant sports editor for the award-winning CU Independent student publication. More about Eli Gregorski
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