LeBron James reaches a historic milestone, becoming the 7th player in NBA history to reach 40,000 points and solidifying his legacy.
LeBron James continues to make history. After becoming the all-time leading scorer in league history last season, James has taken things to another level. James is playing at a high level, and has accomplished something no one else has in NBA history. He is the first player in history to score 40,000 points.
The Los Angeles Lakers faced the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, and coming into the game, James needed only nine points to reach 40,000. He managed to reach the milestone early in the second quarter. James finished the game with 26 points as the Nuggets beat the Lakers 124-114.
This night was extra special, as it marked the 62nd anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game. Chamberlain was once the NBA’s all-time leading scorer before being passed by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Abdul-Jabbar’s record of 38,387 remained for years before James passed it.
James now has 40,017 points. The Lakers still have 20 games remaining in the season. With the Lakers being 10th in the Western Conference, and trying to keep their playoff hopes alive (with at least a spot in the play-in tournament), James will likely have more big games and add to his total points. James spoke on the accomplishment, and mentioned that it was something he “never thought about.”
“I never thought about getting the scoring record,” James said. “It just happened organically. I played the game the right way and went out and played 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 wanted to be the all-time leading scorer. But I’m still playing. And I can still score the ball, so [his point total is] going to go up until I’m done playing.”
James has accomplished a lot in his career. From a young player out of high school to this point in his career, he has won four Most Valuable Players (MVPs), four NBA championships, four Finals MVPs, three All-Star MVPs (while being a 20-time All-Star) and more. His latest accolade is one of a kind, and something that will be talked about for years to come.Â
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