Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James could return from injury for "a few" games during the final week of the regular season, sources with knowledge of the situation told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Thursday (March 23).

James, 38, has been out of action since suffering a tendon injury in his right foot against the Dallas Mavericks on February 26, however, has resumed on-court activity and made a "gradual basketball movement progression," the Lakers announced Thursday via ESPN.

The Lakers' final three games of the regular-season include a games at Crypto.com Arena, which includes a matchup against their co-tenants, the Los Angeles Clippers, on April 5, as well as games against the Phoenix Suns on April 7 and the Utah Jazz on April 9. Last week, Los Angeles point guard Dennis Schroder said James had been participating in three training sessions each day in preparation for a potential return.

Head coach Darvin Ham described James' workouts as "intense and they're going well."

The Lakers are currently 10th and hold the final play-in tournament spot in the Western Conference, trialing the Golden State Warriors by 1.5 games for the sixth-seed, with nine games remaining. James, who broke the NBA's all-time scoring record earlier this season, was averaging 29.5 points (50.1% shooting), 8.4 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game during his 20th NBA season.

Bob McLaughlin