Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James plans to put himself in the history books yet again during the team’s next game on Saturday night against the Denver Nuggets. With nine points, James can become the first player in NBA history to break the 40,000 career point threshold.
He sits at 39,991 after back-to-back high scoring performances on Wednesday and Thursday against the L.A. Clippers and Washington Wizards.
James broke the all-time scoring record late last season, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in a new record that, at one time, appeared untouchable. And when he did so, the prospect of him scoring 40,000 not only became a reality, but rather an inevitability. It took him about one year to reach that point and it’s another huge notch in his belt for arguably the sport’s most storied career.
James was asked about what crossing this scoring threshold means to him, especially while he’s still playing at such a high level in his 21st NBA season.
“I mean, I can’t sit here and say no, because, of course, I mean, no one has ever done it,” James said. “And for me to be in this position at this point in time in my career, I think it’s I think it’s pretty cool. Does it sit like at the top of my things I’ve done in my career? No. But does it mean something? Of course. Absolutely. Why wouldn’t it?
“To be able to accomplish things in this league, the greatest players to ever play in this league, the NBA and this has been a dream of mine, and to hit feats and have milestones throughout my career. They all mean something to me. Absolutely. Obviously, there’s a pecking order, which ones is higher than others, but yeah, absolutely. I would be lying to you if I said no, it doesn’t mean anything. Because it absolutely does.”
The Lakers superstar admitted that moments like this never crossed his mind because of the way he approaches the game and the style that he plays with.
“No, I never thought about getting the score record. It just happened organically,” James added. “I just played the game the right way. Go out and play the game, and let the game come to me, and the scoring record happened organically. For me, it was never a goal of mine when I came into the league like I want to be the all-time leading scorer. But I’m still playing, and I can still score the ball, so it’s going to continue to go up until I’m done playing.”
At this point, there is no telling where James is going to end up on the all-time point totals. But if he continues to play at this level, he may have the new untouchable number when it’s all said and done. Reaching 40,000, at a time, seemed impossible. James did it without ever being the best scorer in the league at any given time.
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