LeBron James gets viral 'geography lesson' amid scheduling controversy

ESPN analyst Richard Jefferson chimed in, wondering why his former Cavaliers teammate was on the plane to begin with. James admittedly had no clue. 

One can sympathize with James, the oldest player in the NBA who is about to enter his 22nd season, tying Vince Carter for most in league history. The 82-game regular season is a grind, and it must be rather fatiguing for a 39-year-old such as James to go through arduous pre- and post-match routines just for preseason games, which are glorified exhibition contests.

James' Lakers will play Giannis Antetokounmpo's Bucks on Thursday in the third of their six preseason games. They will host the Warriors in Las Vegas next Tuesday before flying to Phoenix for another preseason tie next Thursday. They wrap up the schedule with an away game versus the Warriors.

According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin, the Lakers are forced to play all their preseason games on the road due to planned renovations to the Crypto.com Arena. In previous years, the Lakers would play a few preseason games at home and others in nearby cities such as San Diego and Ontario, giving fans in those areas a chance to watch them in action. 

New Lakers head coach JJ Redick isn't too happy with the Lakers' scheduling, either. 

"Not an ideal preseason for us," Redick said Tuesday, via McMenamin.

The Lakers will host the Timberwolves to kick off their regular season on Oct. 22.