LOS ANGELES -- LeBron James paused his pregame free throw routine and stood still just inside the foul line on Friday when he flexed both arms, tilted his head back and let out a guttural roar.
After the longest injury-related layoff of his career -- sitting out 20 games in six weeks because of a high ankle sprain to his right leg -- James was indeed back.
Fittingly, he found himself with the ball in his hands with a chance to win the game, but his 3-pointer with 2.7 seconds remaining missed and the Los Angeles Lakers lost 110-106 after the Sacramento Kings tacked on a pair of free throws.