LeBron James will not be in action on Friday night for the Los Angeles Lakers’ matchup against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, the team announced. James is dealing with a sore ankle that forced him to leave the Lakers’ loss to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night early.

After playing 36 total minutes against the Kings, the 21-year veteran exited the floor with around four minutes left on the clock. Though there was no apparent injury on the floor, James was visibly grimacing in pain.

As of Friday, it does not appear that James is facing any sort of long-term absence. ESPN reported that his recent ankle pain is the result of ‘wear and tear.’ James has been remarkably durable this season all things considered. Friday night against the Bucks will be just the ninth game he’s missed, which is a reversal of a trend we’ve seen in recent years.

Wednesday’s loss made James’ health significantly more important. Not only did the Lakers fall to 34-30, but they have officially lost the season tiebreaker with the Kings and are back in 10th place in the Western Conference. Entering Friday, they are now 3.5 games behind the sixth-place Phoenix Suns for the final automatic playoff spot.

While the Lakers entered the All-Star break on a hot streak, they are 4-4 since play resumed and are entering an extremely difficult stretch of their schedule. After playing the Bucks, their next opponents are the Minnesota Timberwolves, Kings and Golden State Warriors. If James remains sidelined or even compromised, the Lakers will certainly be in trouble for those games.