Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James will miss Wednesday's game against the Portland Trail Blazers and could miss several more games because of “irritation” in his left knee, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium.

LeBron has missed the last three games because of this knee injury, and the Lakers want to be cautious with it so things don't get any worse than they already are. After playing the Blazers, Los Angeles is set to face the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday and the New York Knicks on Saturday to finish out the week. There are then two days off before a showdown against the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks next Tuesday.

The Lakers star recently underwent an MRI that showed some swelling in the knee.

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This obviously isn't ideal news as Los Angeles continues to scuffle through a difficult 2021-22 campaign. The Lakers are 24-27 on the season, which has them in ninth place in the Western Conference. While they just got Anthony Davis back from his long-term knee injury, they haven't been able to build any momentum because of LeBron getting hurt. The team just finished up a 2-4 road trip.

LeBron has been carrying a heavy load this season, which wasn't the plan as he hits 37 years old. The idea of getting Russell Westbrook was to help take some pressure off James, but Westbrook's struggles, Davis' injury and a flawed roster overall have resulted in The King playing big minutes.

The Lakers star is still playing at an extraordinary level, averaging 29.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.1 blocks in 36.6 minutes per game while shooting 52.2% from the field and 35.2% from 3-point range. Still, having to carry that load while still losing a bunch of games hasn't been ideal.

Hopefully, LeBron James will be back soon and that he can stay healthy for the rest of the season.