LeBron James hopes fans who don't appreciate what he's done for the game of basketball eventually come around by the time he's gone ... and he dropped a classic Jay-Z bar to get his point across.
The King met with reporters at his locker after a near-triple-double performance in a 141-116 win over the Atlanta Hawks ... when one question was about how he still cares after 23 years in the NBA.
41-year-old James -- who had 31 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds in his first back-to-back of the season -- explained he would never disrespect the basketball gods .