Will LeBron James pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as NBA's leading scorer of all time? We look at the numbers so far and what they hold for the future
As LeBron James becomes the elder statesman and begins to pile up career marks of every sort, will he pass the legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the all-time scoring list and become the NBA's most prodigious scorer?
Consistency
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James are known for their longevity. The consistency of being on the floor. Career records and marks are a byproduct of year in and year out showing up nightly, performing, and hovering around career averages. Pro athletes able to put up numbers as they enter two decades in pro sports are very rare. How they take care of their bodies to plow through the rigors of jetlag and degenerative wear and tear for all those games, teams, opposition, coaches, cultural changes and teammates is something to discuss at length on another date.
LeBron James
LeBron James, third all-time is scoring, was the fastest (1,295 games) to reach 35,000 points, and also the youngest to do so (36 years, 50 days). He's looking up at Karl Malone with 36,928 points and The Captain - who stands higher than all. Kobe Bryant is fourth with 34,643, and Michael Jordan is fifth in scoring at 32,292
How often did you watch a game and despite all of his faciliatory ambitions, LeBron had 28 points, 38 points and 48 points? His points come so easily in the flow of games you just don't see them. For a player not known as a scorer, and maybe we should begin to dispel that narrative, that LeBron James is approaching Kareem is a true feat. He hasn't averaged below 25 points in any season since his rookie year -- where he averaged 20 per. The career 27 points per game scorer has always let the game come to him and feels it's necessary to get his teammates involved. LeBron James has averaged 7.4 points and also 7.4 assists. If that isn't a measure of balanced consistency, I don't know what is.
From the erstwhile actress and sports writer in her former life, Rosalyn R. Ross:
"Just think, in order to pass Abdul-Jabbar, James would only need to score 37 points in every game this season. He wonât play every game this season so, it wonât happen this year. But we wouldnât have been so quick to put the possibility of those single season numbers past a younger, healthier version of James. And itâs a testament to just how attainable that number one spot is for him if this current version of him can manage a few more seasons."
That's the point. LeBron James' durability has put him in position to break a record that has stood for almost 30 years. If LeBron James truly wants to play in the NBA with his son Bronny, he has all the incentive to break the record. For the sake of basketball fans everywhere, a father/son duo on the same NBA floor has to happen because it's something we just don't see. Interestingly enough, he's 8th in assists with 9,696. John Stockton, the leader with 15,806 is far out of reach, yet LeBron James will also threaten the higher reaches of the NBA career ladder. I;'ve talked to LeBron James on many occasions, and one thing about LeBron James that I'm sure of: he knows his place in time.
LeBron James is about legacy; LeBron James will become history; LeBron James isn't done yet.
Will LeBron James one day own an NBA team?
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was 38 years and 352 days old when he reached 35k, and Karl Malone was 39 years and 131 days old when he did the same. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is one of the most decorated athletes in the history of sports. He's considered the best high school player, the best college player, and many have him as the greatest NBA player. Those of that thought have a tremendous case. In the six seasons in Milwaukee, the man they call The Captain won a NBA Championship with Oscar Robertson. He then went to LA, won the rest of his 5 rings, and was the reason for those five championships. After all of Wilt Chamberlain's dominance, when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar came on the scene, Wilt's challenge became Kareem's steam. The next was here, and the NBA could sky hook into the future.Whenever a team needed a bucket, or to get a bucket just because, Cap was the answer, and he hit so many hooks, we're now talking about all of his points. Yeah, yeah, if only the kids implemented the sky hook into their games, they'd be more effective. Many have said this, yet, why can't we just allow a legendary sky hook to simply be legendary and stand alone?
A Cap story.
Covering the 2008 NBA Finals in Boston, and after talking to David Aldridge, I head to the only empty table in the dining room. I'm digging into the surf and turf after a seven hour bus ride from Philly, and I hear a woman say: "Where do you want to sit?" I look up and his long-time business manager, strategist and âiconomistâ, Deborah Morales, was talking to the one and only Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Like a little kid trying to get everyone's attention I almost got on the table to yell, "Right here!". They obliged because I most likely scared them in my overly exhuberant random fandom, and for the next two hours before Game 1, I had some time to speak to arguably the greatest NBA player of all-time. Kareem was elusive in the many instances we were in the same room previously. He's a get in, get out kind of guy, so if you snooze, you lose. At Chris Webber's Bada Bling for charity, on the white carpet, exactly when Kareem was walking up to me for some quotes, I was tapped on the shoulder by someone needing directions. I'm still mad (I kid) at you for that Asya, yet it worked out later.
I said all that to say Kareem, Julius Erving, George Gervin, Artis Gilmore, Moses Malone, David Thompson, Marques Johnson, etc. Those were the guys for me in my NBA fan infancy, yet the legend of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar outshined them all in almost everything professionally -- championships, MVP's and otherwise. It's not a diss to any of those legends, it just confirms how outstanding Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is for the NBA and sport in general.
Of the 15,837 field goals (most all-time) Kareem made, exactly 1 was from the three-point line. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played in a record 19 All-Star games, and also was awarded a record 6 MVP trophies. That confirms how unstoppable the sky hook was, and there were many victims. Few ever blocked it. How could you? A savvy 7'2" giant shielding you off with his left or right forearm ever so intelligently to not pick up the offensive foul? How could you get close enough? Is Wilt Chamberlain the only one? Kareem is also the career leader in minutes played with 57,446. After passing Wilt Chamberlain on August 5th, 1984 at 31,419 points, did anyone ever envision an athlete like LeBron James would challenge Cap's career scoring mark as a basketball relative to his iconic teammate Magic Johnson?
Does LeBron James pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar?
LeBron James, a 17 time All-Star, has scored 35,367 points for the Cavs, Heat and Lakers. LeBron is 1,561 points behind Karl Malone and 3,030 behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He also has 7,361 career playoff points -- the most ever. His usage%, after a high of 33% in 2008, has remained around 31% since and hasn't dropped past 29.2. The ball will be in his hands. LeBron James is under contract until 2023, so if he averages around 25 points -- two below his career average -- he should pass Kareem in 2 and a half plus seasons. He hasn't had a 2000 point year since 2018 when he scored 2251 points. LeBron James scored 1505 in '19, 1698 in '20, and 1126 last season, so the numbers will be close if his body holds up, and nothing has shown that it won't. The thing is, if LeBron James does break Kareem's scoring record he won't hold onto it for long.
Kevin Durant looms.