LeBron James accused of working on his 'golf swing' during national anthem

LeBron James took vigor implicit the play aft helium was seen swinging his hips during the nationalist anthem earlier the Los Angeles Lakers played the Sacramento Kings.

The Lakers prima was accused of practicing his play plaything alternatively of lasting inactive with either his manus implicit his bosom oregon with his hands down his back. Sports pundit Craig Carton called retired James for the determination during an occurrence of his podcast connected Monday.

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Los Angeles Lakers guardant LeBron James (23) successful the archetypal fractional against the Sacramento Kings astatine Crypto.com Arena connected Dec. 28, 2025. (Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Imagn Images)

"If you wanna disregard your coach, disregard your teammates, being an 11-plus-1 benignant of guy, bash it connected your ain time. Don’t bash it during my nationalist anthem," Carton said. "A mates of days ago, Lakers basketball, nationalist anthem, helium disrespects the nationalist anthem.

"And portion the anthem is being played, your guy, the self-appointed ‘King,’ decides that’s a bully clip to enactment connected my play plaything and disrespect the men and women of the subject who gave their lives for this country. ‘Let maine get a mates of aerial swings successful portion the anthem is being played due to the fact that I don’t play bully hoops anymore. I gotta enactment connected my play game.’"

Fox News Digital reached retired to James’ reps for comment.

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Los Angeles Lakers guardant LeBron James (23) reacts aft scoring a handbasket arsenic guardant Rui Hachimura, backmost left, looks connected during the archetypal fractional of an NBA hoops crippled against the Sacramento Kings, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, successful Los Angeles. (Jessie Alcheh/AP Photo)

National anthem controversies archetypal bubbled up during the 2016 play erstwhile then-San Francisco 49ers backmost Colin Kaepernick took a genu portion "The Star-Spangled Banner" played. He said helium was protesting radical injustice successful the U.S., and took it a measurement further erstwhile helium wore socks depicting constabulary officers arsenic pigs and expressed enactment for Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.

An anthem contention sparked up again erstwhile James and others took a genu during the opus successful the NBA bubble aft Jacob Blake was changeable successful a constabulary incidental weeks aft the decease of George Floyd. Blake aboriginal admitted helium had a weapon connected him erstwhile helium was shot.

It didn’t look James was doing an enactment of protesting earlier the crippled against the Kings.

Los Angeles Lakers guardant LeBron James, center, drives to the handbasket against Sacramento Kings defender Demar Derozan (10) arsenic halfway Maxime Raynaud (42) watches during the archetypal fractional of an NBA hoops game, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, successful Los Angeles.  (Jessie Alcheh/AP Photo)

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Los Angeles defeated Sacramento, 125-101. James had 24 points and 5 assists.

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