Lakers' LeBron James Reposts Photo About 'Being Hated by Idiots' on Instagram

LeBron James has an apparent message for his doubters in the middle of his eight season with the Los Angeles Lakers.

James shared a post to his Instagram story on Wednesday that said, "Being hated by idiots is the price you pay for not being one of them."

The Lakers star is playing this season on an expiring $52.6 million player option.

His team is currently preparing for a Wednesday night road game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. A victory would help Los Angeles (28-17) keep pace with the Houston Rockets (28-16), Phoenix Suns (28-19) and Minnesota Timberwolves (28-19) in a tight Western Conference playoff race.

The team will still be without Austin Reaves, who has been sidelined since Dec. 25 with a calf injury.

The Lakers have benefitted from having James mostly available over that stretch. He's averaged 24.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.2 steals over 15 games since the team lost Reaves.

Los Angeles will once more lean on James as the Lakers look to keep up their recent hot streak of four wins in five games during the week remaining before the Feb. 5 trade deadline.