MIAMI — LeBron James was listed as questionable for the Los Angeles Lakers’ game in Miami on Thursday, meaning Robert Parish might keep outright possession of the NBA’s all-time games played record for a couple more days.
The Lakers said James is dealing with left foot arthritis. Also questionable: Luka Doncic (right hip soreness) and Austin Reaves (right forearm contusion).
Those three players combined for 84 points in the Lakers’ 124-116 win at Houston on Wednesday night. The Lakers flew to Miami after that game, landing at 3:59 a.m. — later than most teams arrive in their next city when facing games on back-to-back days.
James went 13-of-14 from the field in the win, tying the best shooting performance of his NBA career. It was the 1,610th regular-season game of his career, one behind Parish’s mark.
James hit his right elbow on the court in the final minutes of Wednesday’s win, remaining down briefly and grimacing in obvious pain. He told ESPN in the televised on-court interview after the game that he was hoping to play Thursday in Miami — a city he called home for four seasons, during which he won the first two of his four NBA championships.
Parish — who went into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003 — has been the outright leader in career games played since April 6, 1996. He played in game No. 1,561 that night, breaking a tie with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the top spot.
Parish wound up playing 50 more regular-season games, then retired after the 1996-97 season. He started his NBA career with Golden State, then spent more than a decade with Boston before finishing his 21-season run with Charlotte and Chicago.
“No player is better deserving to break that iron man record, that 1,611 games played record, than LeBron,” Parish told Sirius NBA Radio earlier this week. “He deserves it, in my opinion.”
The games played mark will be another entry on the long list of NBA records for James, who already has the league’s all-time top spot in a number of categories including points scored, minutes played, field goals made and field goals attempted.
He’s also the NBA record holder with 23 seasons played, 22 All-Star selections and 21 All-NBA team selections.
If he doesn’t play Thursday, James’ next chance to tie the mark will be Saturday in Orlando.
