All the talk has been about LeBron James breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time scoring record. Lakers are having a rough year but that is a bright point. Kareem has held this scoring record for 39 years, and it has been a record that most people thought would never fall. Kareem played in the NBA for 20 years, and his longevity was quite remarkable. Kareem played for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers in his career, and he scored 38,387 points making him the greatest scorer in the history of the NBA.
Photo Cred: LA Times
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar became the all-time leading scorer on April 5, 1984, against the Utah Jazz. Kareem passed Wilt Chamberlain for the all-time leading scorer. For the past 39 years, no player in the NBA has passed Kareem’s scoring record. All-time greats such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Karl Malone have come close. Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant are known as the two greatest scorers this game has ever seen, and they never came close to Kareem’s scoring record. That shows how great of a player Kareem was because some of the greatest players to play the sport never passed Kareem’s record. Then a kid from Akron, OH, rose through the ranks.
LeBron James came into the NBA not known as a scorer. James is a pass-first player, and he’s someone that some people say is not a great scorer, and he shouldn’t be in the conversation for being an all-time great player. Most people would say Kevin Durant, Michael Jordan, and Kobe Bryant are more gifted scorers than LeBron James. However, LeBron James is on the verge of doing something that nobody else can say they did.
Photo Cred: The Sporting Rush
James has scored over 38,000 points and is a few hundred points short of Kareem’s record. He’s averaging 29.7 points, 7.0 assists, 8.4 rebounds per game, and shooting 51% from the field. The small forward is redefining longevity. Players who have played 20 years in the NBA usually aren’t good in year 20.Kobe Bryant averaged 17.6 points per game while shooting 35 percent from the field. Dirk Nowitzki, in year 20, averaged 7.3 points per game while shooting 36 percent from the field. Kevin Garnett, in year 21, in the NBA, averaged 3.2 points per game.
LeBron is aging like fine wine because he’s putting up numbers, he put up ten years ago. That’s something that’s unreal, and LeBron is in a class by himself when it comes to longevity. When James passes the record, the real question is how long he can keep fighting off father time better than any other athlete in sports.
Photo Cred: King James Gospel
When James retires, the scoring record may be over 40,000 points. Lebron has a lot of basketball left in the tank, and he will continue to play great. People should appreciate his greatness because when he retires, we will never see someone like LeBron James again. James has exceeded expectations; and has put himself in the conversation as one of the greatest players ever. James will February, and we will have a new all-time NBA scoring leader for the first time in 39 years.
