After setting the NBA All-Time Scoring Record, LeBron James is without a doubt the greatest player of all time in the NBA.
A record that stood tall for more than 30 years. NBA greats like Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Tim Duncan, and even Stephen Curry not being able to come within even 1,000 points of the record. One man, some may call him “The Chosen One,“ some may call him “King,“ some may call him nothing at all, but that one man; LeBron James.
This past month, on Feb. 7, James surpassed NBA legend and first-ballot Hall of Famer, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, to become the NBA’s all-time regular season scoring leader, a record that stood untouched for nearly 40 years.
James was perhaps the most watched, praised, and despised high school prospect in history when he joined the NBA in 2003. James, who is known as “The Chosen One” by many sportsmen and even by himself, was warned that he would one day be called a “bust” or “overhyped” if he wasn’t elected to the Hall of Fame on the first vote.
As we go forward to the present, James has exceeded all expectations placed upon him.
This is his resume: four NBA championships, four MVP awards from the Finals, four times as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player, nineteen NBA All-Star selections, thirteen All-NBA First Teams, three All-NBA Second Teams, two All-NBA Third Teams, five All-NBA defensive First Teams, selection to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team, four AP Athlete of the Year titles, and a plethora of other honors, accolades, and awards I won’t bore you with.
In 2023, after 20 years in the NBA, James holds the #1 spot in numerous historical categories.
James leads the NBA in many categories right now, including all-time scoring, first-team All-NBA honors, playoff wins, scoring in the postseason, Player of the Month and Player of the Week awards, and the most selections to the All-Star team.
Along with being in the number one spot for all of those categories, James is also atop many other historical lists as well. James currently sits fourth on the NBA’s all-time assist leader list, ninth in all-time steals, and third, in all-time minutes played as well.
If you think it stops there, it doesn’t. James has dominated the game of basketball for 20+ years, inside and out, and that includes playoffs too, where James has also proven himself to be one of the best players in that category as well.
James possesses nearly all of those. In addition to being the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and leader in playoff wins, James ranks 10th in terms of career playoff blocks, first in terms of career playoff steals, second in terms of career playoff assists, sixth in terms of career playoff rebounds, third in terms of career three-pointers made, first in terms of career field goals made, and first in terms of career playoff minutes played.
On his podcast “TheOldMan&TheThree,” former NBA player and Duke guard JJ Redick even weighed in on the debate, pointing out that LeBron leads, or at least is in the top five, in a number of NBA history scoring categories.
James ranks fifth for all-time NBA career scoring average, has the most clutch-time points in NBA history since the tracking began in the 1996-97 season, ranks second for most game-tying or game-winning shots inside the final minute of the fourth quarter or overtime, and has five game-winning buzzer beaters in the playoffs, which is the most ever in NBA history.
“Just a kid from Akron, Ohio” is a saying that James reminds the world of occasionally. Never forgetting where he came from, staying true to himself, and not giving a single care about what anyone says, James has proven himself to be arguably the greatest basketball player that this world has ever seen.
Instead of debating, let’s just appreciate greatness while it’s here.He is the GOAT though.
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