Los Angeles Lakers and USA Basketball star LeBron James took an inadvertent elbow to the eye in Tuesday’s quarterfinals win over Brazil. James was limited to just 17 minutes, finishing with 12 points, nine assists, and three rebounds.
Fans were concerned for James after he took this elbow to the eye, as the impact of the hit was visible immediately. It quickly became clear that James would need stitches to repair the cut he suffered, which Team USA head coach Steve Kerr confirmed when speaking with reporters after the game.
Giving an update on James, the Golden State Warriors coach revealed that the star forward needed four stitches:
Steve Kerr said LeBron got four stitches during USA’s win vs. Brazil after taking an inadvertent hit to the eye.
This fortunately does not look to be an injury that will keep James out of USA’s semifinals game against Serbia. The 39 year old forward has helped lead Team USA to a perfect record at the Paris Olympics, and will look to keep that going against Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic.
Serbia defeated Australia on Tuesday to earn their spot in the semifinals, and they will look to play much better against Team USA than they did in their previous matchup. The winner of this game will face the winner of France vs. Germany in the gold medal game.
For USA, they hope to have a fully healthy James after this scary hit to the face.
LeBron left the quarterfinals game vs. Brazil after an elbow to the eye.
James has been fantastic throughout this run, averaging 13.8 points, 7.8 assists, and 5.8 rebounds.
