An NBA record that was seen as untouchable has finally been broken. LeBron James makes history and becomes the NBA’s all-time leading scorer by surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Tuesday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Abdul-Jabbar held the record since April 5th of 1984, a record that was previously held by Wilt Chamberlain. That was eight months before James was even born on December 30th 1984. This milestone comes a week after James surpassed Steve Nash and Mark Jackson for fourth all-time on the assist list.
Beyond Expectations
When you look at James’ career, it is safe to say he exceeded all expectations that were placed upon him coming straight out of high school in 2003 where he was deemed “The Chosen One.” James is inarguably one of the greatest basketball players of all-time.
The Akron product is often compared to Michael Jordan in the greatest basketball player of all time conversation. One thing is for sure, James has had the longest prime and greatest longevity in the history of the sport.
Longevity
James has never averaged less than 20 points per game in his career. In his 20th season, LBJ has by far the highest average in points per game at 30.2 in his 2oth season. Kobe Bryant was second at 17.6 points per game in his 20th year. Abdul-Jabbar is fourth at 10.1 points per game.
To play at high level for this long is extremely difficult when taking into account overall health and fitness. Most people don’t realize the challenges and rigors to staying in elite shape with all the wear and tear on the body when the players are in their late 30’s and early 40’s.
Unbreakable Record?
Most people said Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record would never be broken and it will be extremely challenging to break without knowing how long James will continue to play. James has been on record saying recently that he “still has a lot left in the tank” and sees himself playing “at least a couple more years”.
James has chance to reach 40,000 career points which seems unimaginable yet reachable for him. James has been a treat for us as fans to watch and this final chapter of his career will be fun to view.
