On Christmas Day against the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers superstar small forward LeBron James suffered the worst injury of his career.

James tore his left groin and missed 17 consecutive games. The Lakers, who were in the fourth spot in the Western Conference standings after defeating the Warriors on Christmas, went 6-11 without James and fell out of the playoff race.

As a result, LeBron is missing the playoffs this season for the first time since his second season in the league.

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James played in 55 games this season for the Lakers. The four-time MVP averaged 27.4 points, 8.5 rebounds and 8.3 assists per contest while shooting 51.0 percent from the field, 33.9 percent from beyond the arc and 66.5 percent from the free-throw line.

LeBron recorded 32 double-doubles and eight triple-doubles on the season. The Lakers, however, were only 28-27 with James in the lineup.

This summer will allow The King to rest and recover. Coming into this season, James had played in eight consecutive NBA Finals. Obviously, everyone in Los Angeles wanted the Lakers to make the postseason this year, but it could be a blessing in disguise they're missing it since LeBron will get his first summer off in a long time.

Don't be surprised if James comes back next season and puts up even better numbers than he did this year.