In 2023, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers beat Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA’s all-time top scorer. With each game, the icon is now added to his record, making it so that it may never be broken.
This season, James scored 39,000 points, making him the first player in NBA history to do so. Then, he only needed nine points in Saturday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets to hit 40,000.
It seemed inevitable that James would reach 40,000 points at some point during the Nuggets game, since he hasn’t scored less than 10 points in a game since January 5, 2007.
He did just that with a nice layup in the second quarter that gave him nine points for the game:
During his famous 21-year career, James has done a lot of great things. This is just the latest one. He came into the league with a lot of expectations, but he’s found a way to exceed them. At age 39, he’s still playing at an All-NBA level.
The only question now is how many points James will have when he quits. The player from Akron could still play well for another three to four years if he wants to, which means that 50,000 points is not completely out of the question.
LeBron James talks about what it means to him to score 40,000 points
It was almost certain that LeBron James would score 40,000 points before the Lakers played the Nuggets. He only needed nine more points to reach that mark.
James talked about what this achievement meant to him before the game.
James said, “I mean, I can’t just sit here and say no because, well, no one’s ever done it.” “And I think it’s pretty cool that I’m in this position at this point in my career.” Is it near the top of the things I’ve done in my jobs? No. What does it mean, though? Yes, of course. Of course. It makes sense, right?
“It’s been my dream to do great things in this league, to be one of the best players to ever play in the NBA, and to reach great heights and important milestones in my career.” I care about all of them. Of course. There is a hierarchy, with some higher than others, but yes, of course. It doesn’t mean anything, so I would be lying if I said no. Because it does, for sure.”