LeBron James limped out of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 111-101 defeat by the Boston Celtics with a groin injury.

The 40-year-old left the court during a timeout in the fourth quarter after he contested a layup with Jaylen Brow.

James scored 22 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists before his exit with six minutes and 44 seconds left to play.

The NBA’s all-time leading scorer missed 17 games with a groin problem in 2018 but said he did “not have much concern” about this setback.

“I’ve been there before and I know what type of injury we’re dealing with,” said James, who passed 50,000 career points earlier this week.

“Obviously, I’m day-to-day. I’ll look at it each day and see if it gets better, and take the proper measures to see what I need to do moving forward.”

Jayson Tatum bagged 40 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists as the Celtics held off a late rally from the Lakers, spearheaded by Slovenian Luka Doncic, to secure their fourth straight win.

Elsewhere, Stephen Curry passed 25,000 NBA career points during the Golden State Warriors’ 115-110 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

Curry became the 26th player in NBA history to reach the milestone when he claimed a three-pointer in the third quarter.

The 36-year-old finished with 32 points, taking his total to 25,017, but said he had not been keeping track of his overall tally.

“It was a surprise actually. I knew I was coming up on it but I didn’t think about it until I heard it in game,” Curry said.

“I think 10 guys have done it with one franchise, so that’s pretty special. The names that are on that list are synonymous with basketball history, so that’s pretty cool.”