An NBA Legend: The Los Angeles Lakers Honored James for his 20-Years in the Life of the L.A. Laker Abdul-Jabbar
LeBron James has now scored more points than any NBA player in history, as he passed fellow Los Angeles Laker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s career 38,387 points on Tuesday night in front of an enthusiastic home crowd.
Watching James drive down the lane, slam past opponents and dunk is amongst the most thrilling things to watch in basketball.
James and his family came out onto the court to celebrate, as a sea of cameras cameras followed them. The great Abdul-Jabbar was also in attendance, later handing James the ball in an official passing of the torch.
“Everybody that’s ever been a part of this run with me the last … 20-plus years, I just want to say I thank you so much, because I wouldn’t be me without y’all.”
It was a promise that James kept when he became a starter in the NBA as an 18-year-old and was dubbed the Chosen One by Sports Illustrate.
It was a landmark achievement that speaks to his excellence throughout his 20 seasons in the league. And quite amazingly, LeBron continues to play at an elite level and his basketball history is still being written,” Silver’s statement reads.
James said he was going to take on anyone who had played the game. But everyone is going to have their favorite, everyone is going to decide who their favorite is. I know what I bring to the table every single night and what I can do out on this floor.”
It is all about my mind. If my mind is still into it, if I’m still motivated to go out and try to compete for championships, because I feel like that’s what I can still do for any group of guys, for any franchise. I can go out there and still help win multiple championships or win a championship.”
The scoring record was “something I never made a goal of mine or set out to do – it just happened,” he said, and credited great teammates and great coaches that allowed him to be “me.”
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Lakers legend Magic Johnson, who was at Tuesday’s game and helped lure James to the Lakers in 2018 when he was the team’s president of basketball operations, hailed James on Twitter as “such an amazing man on and off the court.”
It wasn’t until nine months after Abdul-Jabbar took the record away from Chamberlain that the NBA’s top scorer was born. Abdul-Jabbar used his sky-hook to keep amassing points until he retired in 1989, at age 42.
“Seeing my family and friends, the people that’s been around me since I started this journey to the NBA, definitely very emotional right there,” James said.
James’ teenage boys burst out of their seats when the points were scored after filming the record-breaking shot. James’ daughter, Zhuri, 8, as well as his wife, Savannah, and mother, Gloria, were seen celebrating.
James was presented with a plaque by Phil Knight. The Miami Heat and the Cleveland Cavs were among the teams that showered James with felicitations.
It is difficult to be a star in sports, entertainment, business or any other field because the public is interested in you. But he’s handled it extremely well.”
James is one of 10 players to have played in at least 20 NBA seasons, and he has taken over one of the sport’s most revered marks. He has been to the NBA Finals 10 times and has four titles to his name.
What makes James’ latest feat all the more impressive is that many people, fans and pundits alike, do not believe scoring has ever been his best attribute.
This season has been more challenging for James than at any point in his career, as the Lakers sit in the lower half of the Western Conference. His star teammate Anthony Davis has missed significant time due to a stress injury to his right foot.
“I mean, he’s as special as it gets,” two-time NBA All Star Joakim Noah, who faced James multiple times over a 13-year career, told CNN Sport. A wonderful player.
We had many competitive moments and it was always about getting past that guy. There were some good and some bad moments but overall, what he does at 38 years old, still being able to dominate the game and still being invested in the work, is what you need to make it to the top.
“What’s unbelievable about that is his scoring is probably not his best thing, you know, he’s a better distributor, he’s a pass-first guy so to be able to lead the NBA in scoring and be a pass-first guy, it says a lot about his dominance.”
In games played, the older man ranks tenth in assists, ninth in steals, tenth in field goals made, 10th in three-pointers and fourth in free throws.
James still looks like he is in top form at age 38, which is a testament to his incredible abilities as a basketball player and his remarkable durability as he does in his prime.
James said that Smith had made him feel old. In his NBA debut, James scored 25 points, six rebound, nine assists, and four steals as the Cleveland Cavs lost to the Kings.
Such was the unprecedented hype around James while he was playing for St. Vincent – St. Mary High School in his hometown of Akron, Ohio, that he signed a seven-year, $90 million contract with Nike on May 22, 2003, before he had even played an NBA game.
His high school basketball games were always packed to the rafters and regularly moved to the bigger home arena of the University of Akron, while some were even shown on national television and pay-per-view.
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“I don’t think we should be surprised. I think we should congratulate him and celebrate him as much as possible. Continue to enjoy the shows that he put on because it’s not going to be for too much longer.
“Whenever he decides to [not] play, but I’m enjoying the show and I wish we could have gotten a chance to play against one another, but who knows what can happen down the line?”
He has also been a part of numerous iconic NBA moments; the “blocked by James” commentary from Mike Breen in Game 7 of the 2016 Finals; the ‘silencer’ celebration after a winner against Golden State in 2014; and the pre-dunk celebration photo of him and Dwyane Wade in 2010.
“I definitely saw this when we were playing together,” Irving, who hit the championship-winning shot in Game 7, said. “His ability to prepare himself mentally, spiritually, emotionally, game to game, day to day.
It is likely that many NBA fans would place Abdul-Jabbar on their NBA Mount Rushmore, with Michael Jordan and Bill Russell rounding out the rest.
While James and Abdul-Jabbar are two vastly different players from very different eras, Dumars says they have similarities as “very intellectual, highly intelligent players.”
His current contract with the Los Angeles Lakers runs until the end of the 2024/25 season – James has regularly stated he wants to play at least one year with his son, Bronny, who will likely enter the NBA draft in 2024 – and this year he has continued to set personal and league records.
He hit nine three-pointers against the Clippers last month, and he will play in the All-Star game this year, tying Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time record.
He scored 46 points against the Clippers, making him the first player in NBA history to score 40 or more points against all 30 teams in the league.
James’ personality, marketability and, most importantly, his electric talent as a basketball player have made his name synonymous with the sport. Even non-sports fans know the names of Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, and other athletes.
The longevity of players like James and Abdul-Jabbar, who played until they were in their 40’s, means it’s very unlikely that players will break the record again.
“Listen, the game evolves, things change,” he said. They do not stay. It may take a while, but can someone come and do it? Someone could come and do it. But they’re going to have to be great for 20 years and that’s the thing with LeBron and Kareem, like 20 years.
“You have to be great that long and so are there people who are talented enough to do it? Yes. Will they stay healthy for 20 years? That’s what’s going to determine it.”
In the letter, Abdul-Jabbar reflected on comments from other athletes, including Magic Johnson and James, in the months leading up to the new record. Abdul-Jabbar said that people were wrong to think that he would not be happy for James.
It’s as if someone won two billion dollars in 39 years, as if I had won a billion dollars in a lottery. How would I feel? I am happy that the next person won as well. His winning doesn’t affect my winning.
While Abdul-Jabbar acknowledged he may not have felt the same had someone surpassed his record, he no longer feels that way. Abdul-Jabbar retired from the NBA at the age of 34 but still focuses on his family and social activism.
“If I had a choice between eating Uncrustables and stacking Legos in the afternoon with my grandson, I’d choose Uncrustables and I’d be on the floor in seconds,” he wrote.
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Abdul-Jabbar corroborated comments James made earlier that the two athletes don’t have a relationship. The retired athlete blamed his shyness on his age, and the fact he was 38 while Abdul-Jabbar was 75.
He pointed to previous comments he made about James. This includes criticizing James for comments he made about the pandemic. Abdul-jabah said he has previously written articles “lavishly praising” the player and continues to do so today.