The Los Angeles Lakers ‘ playoff hopes have been fading for weeks. Now, to stay alive on Tuesday night against the Phoenix Suns, they’ll have to find a way to win without LeBron James . James, a four-time winner of the NBA’s most valuable player award, will be forced to miss the pivotal clash with the Suns due to a nagging left-ankle injury that has compromised his availability over the last week. The 37-year-old missed two games last week with the injury as well as Sunday’s game against the Denver Nuggets, which the Lakers lost, putting them a full two games behind the San Antonio Spurs for the final spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament. Heading into Tuesday’s game, Los Angeles plays only four more times this season. In order to have a chance at the play-in, the team would need to pull off a 3-1 or 4-0 stretch, with the Spurs winning no more than one of their final four games. James’ ankle injury has been bothersome for some time, though the extent to which it has sl...