38,388 Points...and Counting

On April 5, 1984, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar hit his patented "skyhook" from 15 feet against the Utah Jazz. That shot increased his career point total to 31,420, making Kareem the highest scoring player in NBA history, surpassing Wilt Chamberlain. Kareem would add 6,967 more points for his career, giving him a grand total of 38,387 in his stellar career. He had been the all-time leading scorer ever since that evening in 1984, and that exact total stood as the standard-bearer since Kareem's career ended in 1989. Other legends have come since then, players such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dirk Nowitzki, but none have come close to Kareem's number. Karl Malone was the closest, but he would fall 1,459 points short.

Enter LeBron Raymone James.

It's hard to believe that I've been watching LeBron's career since Day One. I still remember the buzz surrounding him; this 18-year-old kid from St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, being drafted #1 by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003. This was the same draft that included Carmelo Anthony, Darko Milicic, and Dwyane Wade, and I have to mention Milicic, because he (of all people) was the first of the group to actually win an NBA Championship. The buzz around LeBron was so great that it was already decided that he would be the next great star. The comparisons to MJ hit NBA fandom very early; he even reached the NBA Finals in his fourth season. They were swept by the San Antonio Spurs, and the Cavs wouldn't get close to the Finals after that.

Then, "The Decision" happened. We all know this. Those seven fateful words:

"I'm taking my talents to South Beach."

LeBron got a lot of undeserved heat (no pun intended) for his public announcement that he would be signing with the Miami Heat, with the worst of it coming from Cavs fans in Cleveland. In four years with Miami, LeBron reached the Finals every year, and after losing to the Dallas Mavericks that first year, he received from flak for his lackadaisical approach. The following year would end much better, as LeBron finally captured his first championship with a five-game series win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, and was named MVP of that year's Finals. LeBron's first ring came in his ninth season, which was two years longer than it took MJ to win his first one, though he would repeat in 2013 and add another Finals MVP, this time defeating the San Antonio Spurs in seven games.

After losing to the Spurs in 2014, LeBron returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and many (myself included) saw this as a chance at redemption. No one, however, was more hellbent on redemption than LeBron himself. Though he enjoyed the success that he had in Miami, LeBron truly felt that he owed not only the Cavs, but the city of Cleveland, a championship. He definitely tried. His first year back in Cleveland saw the Cavaliers reach the NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history, but they were defeated by the up and coming Golden State Warriors. This began the big rivalry between the two teams that took over the NBA for four straight years, and also had NBA fans complaining about the league's lack of parity. However, there was one absolutely monumental occurrence from that stretch:

How well I remember the evening of June 19, 2016. The Warriors and Cavs faced each other again, and this was the 73-9 Warriors team that people were handing the championship to before the playoffs even started. Golden State went up 3-1 in that year's Finals, but they lost Games Five and Six, leading to a Game Seven. It was close throughout, and the final minute saw Kyrie Irving's go-ahead three-pointer, followed by LeBron's block. LeBron went one-for-two at the line to increase Cleveland's lead to four, and they shut down the Warriors the rest of the way. The comeback was complete. The Cleveland Cavaliers won Game Seven, 93-89, to win their first NBA Championship in franchise history.

Without question, this one meant a lot to LeBron. I still remember the emotion from LeBron. He fulfilled his promise. He brought a championship to Cleveland. It took much longer than he planned, but he did it. They would not win another one, as the Warriors defeated the Cavs in 2017 and 2018, and after those Finals, LeBron ended up signing with the Los Angeles Lakers. Even so, this departure was much better than his first, because, as I said before, he fulfilled his promise to Cleveland.

LeBron added a fourth championship in 2020, but before then, there was talk of the scoring record starting to emerge. When it came to LeBron, it was a matter of time until he surpassed Kareem. He moved past a lot of big names in the last few seasons, including MJ himself to enter the top five. It was on January 25, 2020 that he surpassed fellow Lakers legend, Kobe Bryant, and he passed Karl Malone to move into second place. Kareem was the only name left on that list, and I just want to say, while I knew that LeBron would be one of the great generational talents of all time, I never thought he'd get close to the scoring record. I never thought anyone would pass Kareem.

But on February 7, 2023, LeBron did just that.

On that evening, LeBron needed only 36 points to surpass Kareem, who was in attendance to watch history in the making. It didn't look easy, but he would get closer and closer, bit by bit, and in the final seconds of the third quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder, LeBron received the ball from Russell Westbrook, and from 14 feet, made the shot that propelled the man known as King James into NBA history. The basket marked LeBron's 38,387th and 38,388th career points, officially making him the all-time leading scorer.

I still can't believe the history I watched. LeBron James: the NBA's all-time leading scorer. He needed 36 on that night, and he finished with 38 points, putting him at 38,390 points, and he's not done yet. One has to believe that LeBron will be the first to reach 40,000 points. The amazing thing: LeBron reached his total in 150 fewer games than Kareem. LeBron James is a lot of things to a lot of people, but there's one word that we all know fits him very perfectly: icon.