It's no secret the NBA is facing an uphill battle.

The league's declining ratings have stretched far beyond just the first week and have continued as Christmas Day, normally an NBA spectacle, approaches.

Many reasons have been tossed around as to why ratings are down, but the common suggestion is that the regular season is becoming a lot like what the All-Star Game has been recently.

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In recent years, the midseason contest has become full of deep 3-pointers, uncontested dunks and almost zero defense. Now, we are seeing a record pace of 3-pointers made, missed and taken in general, all while a lack of defense has become apparent.

This year, the NBA All-Star Game will be a four-team tournament the league hopes will add some competitive juice.

LeBron James admitted "the last couple of years have not been a great All-Star Game," but he knows the NBA faces bigger issues, and the 3-pointer might be largely to blame.

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"Listen, it's a bigger conversation. It's not just the All-Star Game, it's our game in general. Our game, there's a lot of f---ing threes being shot. So it's a bigger conversation than just the All-Star Game," James said Thursday.

James is averaging 5.7 3-pointers attempted per game; his career-high is eight from the 2021-22 season. He added that "something had to change" regarding the All-Star Game.

"I was not part of the committee. It's different, but I don't know. We'll see. We'll see when we get there. It's different. Obviously, any time you make some type of change, there's gonna be some [blowback]. I don't know. I have my ideas of what could possibly work, but I'm not gonna do that. We gotta do something."

Ratings for games on ESPN, ABC, TNT and NBA TV are down 25% from last year. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver recently pointed at a lack of cable TV in households as a contributing factor.

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Los Angeles Lakers head coach J.J. Redick said Thursday that LeBron James is away from the team due to "personal reasons."

Redick called it an "excused absence," as James' status for Friday is up in the air – he was already dealing with a foot injury and missed Wednesday's game, his first of the year.

Turning 40 later this month, it seems that Father Time may just be sneaking up on the NBA's all-time leading scorer.

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In fact, Redick admitted that James has felt "gassed" and the team feels they are mismanaging his minutes in his 22nd season. Redick also said James has asked to be taken out of a couple of games for some breaks.

"For us, we have to be cognizant as we play more and more games, just the cumulative effect of playing a lot of minutes and Sunday, being banged up with the foot thing, it felt like a good opportunity for him to get some rest," Redick said.

James expressed a desire earlier this season to play in all 82 games, but both he and the Lakers are now being practical with the inevitable minor injuries that arise during any season.

While he already has six triple-doubles this season – including four-straight at one point – his 23.0 points per game are the lowest he's posted since his rookie season, over 20 years ago with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

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James looks like his vintage self on the glass and passing; he's averaging 8.0 rebounds and 9.1 assists per game, both over his career totals. However, his three-point shooting has taken a dip.

Through 15 games, he hit three-pointers at a career-best 43.0% clip. In his next seven, though, he hit just four of 34 and had missed 20 in a row. He did go 6 for 11 from deep in his last game, dropping 39 points, but that was just the second time he eclipsed 20 in his last seven games.

The Lakers are on a 3-7 skid since their 10-4 start to the season, but Redick remains confident in their ability to fix the problems that have bedeviled them recently in offensive consistency and defensive intensity. Redick also said he has spoken frequently with James and Anthony Davis about the Lakers' ability to stay mentally strong during bad stretches.

Separately, news of James' absence followed UFC star Colby Covington's rant about the all-time leading scorer where he questioned James' alleged ties to disgraced music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs and his now-infamous "Diddy Parties."

James was recently confronted by an NFL fan who accused him of attending Combs’ parties until security intervened. It is not known if James attended any of Combs’ parties in the past or not.  

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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UFC star Colby Covington wasted no time taking shots during a media appearance Wednesday, but he didn't target upcoming opponent Joaquin Buckley. 

Covington instead ripped into NBA superstar LeBron James. 

It wasn’t a question from a reporter that prompted Covington to launch into a rant about basketball’s all-time leading scorer. 

He started off his press conference by questioning James about an old video that resurfaced with James talking to disgraced music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs about his now-infamous "Diddy Parties."

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"I’m gonna start this off, you know, since I’m the man of the hour, man of the show," Covington said. "I want to ask Lebron what does he mean by, ‘There’s no party like a Diddy party.’ I truly want to know. And not only that, LeBron, how many Diddy parties have you actually been to? I’m really curious to know. And is that the reason you left social media because all the backlash you were getting for going to so many Diddy parties?"

The comment Covington is talking about was an old Instagram Live of "P. Diddy" and James in which the basketball star said, "Ain’t no party like a Diddy party," which the music mogul loved. 

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It's a comment that didn’t age well since Combs was charged with racketeering conspiracy; sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and transportation to engage in prostitution in a federal indictment unsealed Sept. 17. 

Authorities alleged Combs ran a criminal enterprise through his business, which includes Bad Boy Entertainment, and he would frequently have "Freak Offs," described as "elaborate produced sex performances that Combs arranged, directed, masturbated during, and often electronically recorded," according to an indictment.

James was recently confronted by an NFL fan who accused him of attending Combs’ parties until security intervened. It’s unknown whether James attended any of Combs’ parties in the past. 

"It’s pathetic, man," Covington added. "People think this guy is a role model. He wants to defund the police, the most patriotic people in America, serving and protecting our country. 

"LeBron, you’re a f---ing scumbag, and I hope you get locked up in the same cell with Diddy."

James wasn’t the only target of Covington, who also took shots at fellow fighter Jon "Bones" Jones, among other fighters in the sport. 

Covington has been vocal about James in the past, and he’s always been one to speak his mind and stir some controversy during media appearances.

The American fighter is 17-4 in his UFC career. He lost his last fight at UFC 296 against Leon Edwards. He’s 2-3 in his last five fights, with his last win coming against Jorge Masvidal in March 2022. 

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Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James has taken a break from social media "for the time being," and many have shared their own opinions about this course of action by the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. 

It also led to some defending of James, which came in the form of former ESPN employee Jemele Hill. 

Hill applauded James’ move, which he had posted on X, by saying that "Twitter has become largely untenable. Selfishly, I hope he deactivates his account."

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That led to an argument in the comments under Hill’s post, with one user saying, "I think being a sore loser and having to actually engage uncensored oppositional politics really annoys the left. It’s a soft move."

Hill answered by saying, "You all are under the twisted belief that subjecting yourself to constant vitriol and engaging with a—holes is some kind of badge of honor."

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"This app is at an all-time low," Hill added. "It’s full of racists, conspiracy theorists and jerks. If that’s what y’all consider intellectually stimulating, God help you."

One X user agreed with Hill, commenting that he has an "easy answer" to those who you don’t wish to hear from on the app – "the block button." The X user also said "there is a stigma that those who lean left are snowflakes," which Hill responded to. 

"What I find funny is that the people who throw around that ‘snowflake’ term are the weakest folks," she replied. "Sorry, it’s not ‘challenging ideology’ calling somebody a c--- 100 times a day. And [Elon] Musk also changed the block features on the platform, too. And again, nobody owes you engagement."

Hill has defended James recently when it came to the presidential election as well, where she blasted San Francisco 49ers star Nick Bosa for his lack of explanation in wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat in support of President-elect Donald Trump prior to Election Day.

James had provided details about why he supported Vice President Harris in the election, saying that "having a daughter, having a wife, having a mother and things of that nature, what (Harris) believes in when it comes to women’s rights, that’s what the future with my kids and where I see our country should be."

Hill used James’ detailed answer on why he was voting for Harris to blast Bosa. 

"Oh look, LeBron was asked about a public political statement that he made and he explained IN DETAIL why he did it. Nick Bosa doesn’t have the guts to do this," she said.

James’ time off from social media came after he shared the screenshot of a lengthy X post from NBA agent Rich Kleiman, who ripped national sports coverage for its negativity.

"We can all acknowledge that sports is the last part of society that universally brings people together. So why can’t the coverage do the same? It’s only click bait when you say it," Kleiman wrote at the time. "When the platform is so big, you can make the change and allow us all an escape from real life negativity. I for one find it all a waste of breath. The Olympics and JJ [Redick] and Bron’s show was the future of what this can and should all be."

James said "AMEN!!" to the post before sharing his decision to step away from his social platforms. 

Meanwhile, James’ Lakers have won six straight games as they’ve started the 2024-2025 season hot with an overall 10-4 record, good for third place in the Western Conference.  

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LeBron James' Zero Dark Thirty Mode has been re-activated, but in odd timing.

The NBA's all-time leading scorer used to take social media breaks ahead of the playoffs, but now he says he will be off social media "for the time being."

The announcement came about five minutes after James shared a screenshot of a lengthy X post from NBA agent Rich Kleiman, written on Oct. 24, about the negativity in sports coverage.

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Kleiman, who is Kevin Durant's agent, wrote that it "confuses" him why "some of the National sports media still think that the best way to cover sports is through negative takes."

"We can all acknowledge that sports is the last part of society that universally brings people together. So why can’t the coverage do the same? It’s only click bait when you say it," Kleiman wrote at the time. "When the platform is so big, you can make the change and allow us all an escape from real life negativity. I for one find it all a waste of breath. The Olympics and JJ [Redick] and Bron’s show was the future of what this can and should all be."

"AMEN!!" James posted, along with a salute emoji.

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"And with that said I’ll holla at y’all! Getting off social media for the time being. Y’all take care," he added in another post in which he included a peace sign and crown emoji.

James' departure comes shortly after the Atlanta Falcons' social media team announced they, too, were taking a break to "take care of our mentals, rest up, and get ready for what we expect to be an exciting finish."

Two days ago, James posted a lot of praise for the Colorado football team and Deion Sanders.

"I don’t hear non of those @CUBuffsFootball @DeionSanders HATERS being up front and loud! They’re in hiding now!" James posted. "Coach Prime said ‘We Coming’. Well it’s ‘We Here’ now. Love what’s going on there in Boulder."

James recently racked up four consecutive triple-doubles, the longest stretch of his career, in his 22nd NBA season. He is averaging 23.5 points, 9.4 assists and 8.1 rebounds per game this year while shooting a career-high 41.6% from three.

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