ESPN’s Shams Charania was the first to report that Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James would miss three to four weeks due to sciatica in his right side (the tweet went public on Oct. 9).

While many have no doubt that James is dealing with a legitimate injury and has a reasonable return timeline, one analyst offered a theory about the real reason the 21-time All-Star isn’t playing with the Lakers to start the 2025-26 season.

“LeBron James is not playing because of some invented sciatica, which, by the way, is treatable, but he just decided that I’m going to be out for weeks and weeks and weeks, despite the fact that sciatica shouldn’t knock you out for a month in advance,” FS1’s Craig Carlton said Wednesday. “I think he’s sitting out for two reasons.”

“One,  it’s my belief that he’s getting whatever type of serum he needs to still play at 40 years old, but I think the other reason is he’s trying to force his way out. LeBron doesn’t want to be a part of the Lakers anymore because his legacy is what? His legacy is shopping himself to teams that have great talent around him.”

“The ethos of LeBron James is not leading a team to victory, even with only a Robin to your Batman, it’s I need three or four great players to go out there and win.”

In Carlton’s defense, James has been at the center of trade rumors since the conclusion of the 2024-25 season.

The four-time NBA champion has struggled to accept the fact that the franchise no longer views him as the main attraction with Luka Doncic coming to town.

As a result, James’ relationship with the Lakers has gradually deteriorated, prompting many to speculate about the former Cleveland Cavaliers phenom’s future in Los Angeles.

That said, it’s challenging to envision James intentionally missing the start to his historic 23rd NBA campaign to potentially force a trade to a contending Eastern or Western Conference.

It’s reasonable to assume that James, being the fierce competitor that he is, would go to war with his teammates nightly if he were fully healthy in late October.

Unfortunately, that isn’t the case at this time, which explains why the Lakers will be shorthanded for a shortened period.