Although Year 20 didn’t end with his fifth NBA Championship, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James should still consider this past season a success considering where the team started the year.
James accomplished numerous accolades, including surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the leading scorer in NBA history. Abdul-Jabbar himself believes James has nothing left to prove in his career, but that shouldn’t stop the King from returning for Year 21 and chasing another title.
Throughout his career, James has won just about every major award there is and been named to numerous All-Star and All-NBA teams. However, one piece of hardware that’s missing from his trophy case is the Slam Dunk Contest award. Fans were clamoring for years for James to join due to his highlight reel dunks, but the Los Angeles Lakers star never participated.
When asked why he never joined the event, James said winning the contest was never a goal of his, via Brandon Robinson of Bally Sports:
“I don’t think it was something I wanted to accomplish in my career; it’s not a goal of mine and it never was coming into the NBA to be a part of the Dunk Contest, you know? Making the NBA All-Star Team was, being the league MVP, winning Defensive Player of the Year, winning NBA Championships…? THOSE were some goals of mine. The NBA Dunk Contest was NEVER a goal of mine so, it wasn’t something that I had too much passion for.”
Fans have to feel a little bummed out that James never decided to join in on the fun as he would have surely done well. A physical marvel, James in his prime used to throw down spectacular dunks that would get the arena energy all the way up. Even in the latter stages of his career, James can still generate some hang time though it’s far from what he could do in his youth.
At his age, there’s virtually no chance of James ever signing up for the Dunk Contest but Lakers fans will surely be fine with that if it means another chance at banner No. 18.
LeBron James was most viewed player on NBA social media in 2022-23 season
The league is flush with talent on nearly every team, a delight for basketball fans who consume the games on a daily basis. While the new generation of stars are exciting to watch, James remains the main draw as he was the most viewed player on social media during the 2022-23 season.
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