LeBron James breaks records and then loses games: It's a tradition, and there's proof
LA Lakers star forward LeBron James became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer on Tuesday night versus OKC, surpassing legendary center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. James now sits at 38,390 career points.
He is also still averaging 30.2 points per game in his 20th season, so it doesn’t appear he will be slowing down anytime soon. For many, James’ record cemented him as the greatest player of all time, however, there are still some who feel James has been chasing stats. These claims were only amplified when a concerning trend was revealed by the Lakers blog “Silver Screen and Roll.”
Despite James’ 38-point record-breaking night versus the Thunder, the Lakers still lost 133-130, in a game that they desperately needed to win. This comes as LA is just 25-30 and 13th in the Western Conference. Most would agree that it’s hard to blame James for the loss as his co-star Anthony Davis finished with just 13 points.
However, according to Silver Screen and Roll, James reaching historic statistical milestones in losses has become the norm for the star forward.
“When he passed Michael Jordan in scoring, the team lost by 16 to Denver. When he passed Kobe, they lost by 17 to the Sixers. When he became the all-time leading scorer, (including playoff points), L.A. lost to Draymond Green-less Warriors,” Silver Screen and Roll wrote.
"He reached the 10,000 points, 10,000 assists and 10,000 rebounds mark in a 29-point defeat vs. the Phoenix Suns. And when he passed Karl Malone? The Lakers blew a 16-point lead to Bradley Beal and Kyle Kuzma-less Wizards. Like I said, this has been a tradition."
This is crazy 🤯
(Via @LakersSBN ) https://t.co/xhavIktsuo
Are LeBron James’ pursuits of statistical milestones really to blame for the Lakers’ losses?
It's basically impossible to argue that the focus of Tuesday’s game wasn’t almost solely on LeBron James. The entire broadcast was about James and his in-game scoring tracker was in the top right corner of the broadcast all game. Many celebrities and family members of James also attended the game.
All of this put a lot of pressure on James’ teammates to make sure they didn’t steal his spotlight. It also likely contributed to the disappearance of someone like Anthony Davis.
After James made his record-breaking shot late in the third quarter, there was even a brief intermission. This included a tribute to James involving NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. James also gave a speech to the crowd, with the Lakers trailing by five.
“I just want to say thank you to the Laker faithful," James said. “You guys are one of a kind. To be able to be in the presence of such a legend as great as Kareem, it’s very humbling.”
Overall, it's probably true that when the focus is on a single player it’s harder to play proper team basketball and execute a game plan. But LeBron James passing NBA legends like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant in all-time scoring is still a big deal.
Yes, LeBron James theoretically could have achieved all these milestones naturally in the flow of the game without causing a distraction. But with all the hard work he’s put in over the years, James deserves the chance to savor all his major accomplishments. This should be true even if it comes at the expense of a few regular season wins.
Also read: Can LeBron James become the first-ever NBA player to score 40,000 points or beyond?