Cleveland Cavaliers Rumors: LeBron James Gets Back Injection, Most Likely Sitting out for the Rest of the Preseason

By Cheri Cheng - 16 Oct '15 16:51PM

The Cleveland Cavaliers will be playing it safe with LeBron James.

General manager David Grffin revealed that James received an anti-inflammatory injection in his back this week and could be sitting out for the remainder of the preseason.

ESPN.com noted that even though James has had back issues in the past, the injection was most likely given as a precaution. James is expected to return for training camp.

Per Brian Windhorst and Dave McMenamin of ESPN:

"Cleveland had long planned to sit James out towards the end of the exhibition schedule and then put its emphasis on ramping up as a team in that final week of practice with both James and Kevin Love leading the way on the court. Griffin said the team timed James' injection in conjunction with that planned rest period...With the expectation that James will again have to carry a heavy burden early in the season until the Cavs are able to get healthy -- Timofey Mozgov and Anderson Varejao are playing but still coming back from surgeries -- the team is trying to take measures to prepare."

Point guard Kyrie Irving and Iman Shumpert are still dealing with their injuries and Love technically has not been cleared to return. On top of these injuries, the Cavaliers still have not re-sign Tristan Thompson. James is expected to carry the team once the season starts.

"We're really happy with how LeBron came into camp. Came in great shape," head coach David Blatt said. "We want to take good care of him for the start of the season. As you know in his great and storied career, he has amassed a lot of miles. We're trying to keep those preseason miles to a minimum. ...We'll see what happens at the beginning of next week. I certainly don't expect him to play both games and I don't know if he'll even play one. We'll see."

James has played in two preseason games and recorded a total of 22 points in 48 minutes. The Cavaliers, who are 0-5, have two preseason games left before they host the Chicago Bulls in the season opener on Oct. 27.