NBA2026-10-08LeBron James Is Managing Foot Arthritis and Back Trouble and the 76ers Are Already Planning His Nights Off
By Verdexed NBA Desk
LeBron James is entering his 24th NBA season, and his first in Philadelphia, with two conditions the 76ers plan to manage every day. ESPN's Dave McMenamin reported this week that James, 41, has chronic arthritis in his left foot and continues to treat his lower back after a bout of sciatica cost him the first month of last season. The arthritis is not new: it appeared multiple times on injury reports during his final season with the Lakers, according to the report.
Nothing in the reporting suggests James will miss time to start the season. The point is the routine. James' day begins around 7:45 a.m. at the Sixers' training complex with longtime trainer Mike Mancias, with stretching, muscle activation and targeted treatment that starts with the left foot and then moves to the back, per ESPN. Philadelphia opens the regular season on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks.
How the Sixers are handling it
Nick Nurse has been open about the plan. On Sept. 30, the coach said the team had talked extensively about managing the workloads of James and Joel Embiid, and that the staff was already mapping out back-to-back plans and the next month of the schedule. He also said James' workload would be carefully managed in his first season with the club.
The preseason has followed that script. James sat Monday's opener against the Knicks as planned rest, along with Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, and Philadelphia won 120-97 behind 22 first-half points from Jaylen Brown. James did take part in the team's open scrimmage on Oct. 3. Nurse said Wednesday he expected to get a majority of his players on the floor for Thursday's game at Brooklyn, which could mean James' first exhibition appearance in a Sixers uniform. Philadelphia then plays at Boston on Saturday and hosts the Celtics on Oct. 16.
James chose Philadelphia in July on a two-year, veteran-minimum deal worth about $8 million, with a player option for the second season, ending an eight-season run in Los Angeles. He described the move as his last decision, and the contract structure signals a role player's salary for a player who will still start. The projected opening-night lineup is Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Brown, James and Embiid.
What last season says about this one
The baseline is still strong. James averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists, 6.1 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 33.2 minutes over 60 games for the Lakers in 2025-26, shooting 51.5% from the field. The 60 games came after he sat the first month with right-side sciatica, and he was listed at times for left foot joint arthritis along the way.
| Player | Camp status | Workload note |
|---|---|---|
| LeBron James | Sat preseason opener (rest) | Foot arthritis, back maintenance, back-to-back plan |
| Joel Embiid | Full participant, sat opener (rest) | Played 38 games in 2025-26, workload managed |
| Tyrese Maxey | Sat opener (rest) | Projected starter at point guard |
| Ariel Hukporti | Out for season | Ruptured right Achilles, Oct. 5 |
The roster is the bigger change. In Los Angeles, James was the primary creator for long stretches. In Philadelphia, he shares the ball with Maxey, Brown and Embiid, and that matters for how many minutes he needs to play. A lighter nightly load is good for the foot and the back. It is less good for counting stats.
The frontcourt behind Embiid is also thin after backup center Ariel Hukporti tore his right Achilles on Oct. 5. On nights Embiid sits, Philadelphia is likely to play smaller, and James is the most natural candidate to absorb some of the rebounding and playmaking that a center would otherwise provide.
Fantasy fallout
Price in the missed games before you draft him. The arthritis report does not change James' per-game value much, but it confirms what drafters should already assume: scheduled rest on back-to-backs and a games-played total that will look a lot more like last season's 60 than a full 82. In head-to-head category leagues, his per-game line still justifies a mid-round selection. In points leagues and roto, where games played drive totals, he belongs a round or two later than his name suggests.
Plan for the rest days. If the Sixers follow through on Nurse's back-to-back planning, James and Embiid are likely to sit some of the same nights or alternate. Managers rostering both should expect lineup holes on the second night of back-to-backs and should avoid stacking too many other high-rest veterans.
Who benefits. On nights James sits, Brown and Maxey absorb the usage, and Edgecombe's role grows. In DFS, those are the price-sensitive spots to target once Philadelphia releases its injury report.
Daily formats. James' status will often be a late call. Avoid locking him into early-slate DFS lineups on the second leg of back-to-backs until the Sixers confirm.
Betting angle
For bettors, the implication is less about the season-long futures market and more about nightly prices. Spreads on the second night of back-to-backs will move when James and Embiid are ruled out, and the value in those spots usually goes to whoever acts first on the news. James' player props will also carry more volatility than usual because of minute management in lopsided games.
Season-long, the case for the Sixers rests on having their stars available in April, not in November. A cautious early schedule for James supports that plan. Verdexed's game-by-game call on Philadelphia will be on the NBA predictions page (/nba/predictions) once the regular season begins.
What's next
The first data point is whether James plays Thursday at Brooklyn, and how many minutes he logs if he does. After that, watch Saturday's game in Boston, which will show whether Nurse is willing to play James twice in three days even in exhibition play.
Opening night is Oct. 20 at the Knicks. Philadelphia's injury report that afternoon, and its plan for the first back-to-back of the season, will tell fantasy managers more than anything said in camp.