J-Speaks: LeBron James Rises Up on NBA All-Time Scoring List

As he opened another new chapter in his NBA story, four-time Kia NBA regular season MVP LeBron James joined the Los Angeles Lakers in search of his fourth NBA title. While the team has not gotten off to a seamless start, they have gotten a lot better lately and he has continued to make even more history. Earlier this year, he surpassed future Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks. On Wednesday night, he surpassed a former Laker great on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. 

After scoring on a one-foot runner with 3:55 remaining in the game, followed by a ensuing free throw that was part of night of 44 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists, and three block shots James surpassed the late great Wilt Chamberlin (31,419 points) becoming the fifth best scorer in NBA history with 31,425 points in the Lakers (8-6) 126-117 win versus the Portland Trail Blazers (10-4) on ESPN. 

James was 13 for 19 from the field, including 5 for 6 from three-point range, and 13 for 15 from the free throw line 36 minutes of work. 

This also marked the 42^nd time in NBA history that a player individually recorded a stat line of 44 points, 10 boards, and nine assists, and represented the only time someone did it with under 20 field goal attempts. 

This was also the most points scored by a Laker since future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant, who spent his entire 20-year career with the “Purple and Gold” in his career finale three seasons ago. 

“When I’m able to do what I love to do, and do it at this level—and even being mentioned with the greats that have ever played this game—it just always brings me back to my hometown of Akron, [Ohio],” James, who registered his first 40-plus point performance of the season and just missed registering his 75 career triple-double said to ESPN’s play-by-play announcer Dave Pasch for the telecast after the win. “And knowing where I come from, knowing how hard it was to get to this point—it’s just never being in satisfied mode. I give it all to the man above for giving me God-given abilities. I’m taking full advantage of ‘em. And then my coaching staff and my teammates throughout these 16 years so far, have gotten me to this point.” 

The aforementioned four-time league MVP and 14-time All-Star, who surpassed Nowitzki (31,187 points), who has yet to play this season because of ankle surgery for sixth place in the Lakers 110-106 loss at the San Antonio Spurs (7-7) on Oct. 27 said that the game ball and his jersey, which was the team’s 2018-19 “City Edition,” that made their debut on Wednesday night would be sent to his I Promise School in Akron, which opened back late in the summer time for display.

When the 12-time All-NBA First Team selection spoke with reporters at his locker during the postgame, he put the late great Chamberlin in the same category as Hall of Famer, his former Cavaliers teammate and three-time champion with the Lakers Shaquille O’Neal, as he surpassed Chamberlin on the court where his Lakers’ No. 13 jersey hangs in Staples Center. 

“One of the most dominant forces we ever had in our game along with Shaq,” James said in comparing Chamberlin and the eighth all-time leading scorer in O’Neal at 28,596 points. “One of the greatest Lakers ever to play the game. One-hundred-point scorer. One of the greatest scorers, rebounders to ever played this game. Multisport, [multi]dimensional type of athlete. People had never seen something like that in that era. So, just dominated in all walks of life. Not just basketball, but just period.” 

As impressive as Chamberlin was in his era of basketball, the same can be said for James in this era. Yes, he has handled his business both individually on the court and has been a major reason for the success with first the Cleveland Cavaliers in two stints and the Miami Heat before joining the Lakers this past summer on a four-year, $154 million deal, he has had a serious impact off the floor as well. 

Along with starting the “I Promise School,” a public elementary school that he created in partnership with the LeBron James Family Foundation, he has been an active supporter of non-profit organizations like After-School All-Stars, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the Children’s Defense Fund. 

He has also taken stances on controversial issues, which before is something a lot of athletes, let alone NBA players stayed clear of not knowing the impact it could have on their career. James spoke up on the shooting of Trayvon Martin on Feb. 26, 2012; the racist comments made by former owner of the Los Angeles Clippers Donald Sterling in 2014; and the fatal shootings of Michael Brown, Jr. by 28-year-old Ferguson, MS police officer Darren Wilson and the death of Staten Island, NY resident Eric Garner by a choke hold by a New York City Police Department officer. 

To James, this moment was more than just passing another NBA legend in a particular statistical category but it is just another chance to show how far he has come, how much he has grown as a basketball player as well as a person. A person who is trying to be a shining example to those that watch him in person and on television of what it takes to be great. 

One major part of that greatness is being in tip-top shape and that is one thing that James has taken a great deal of personal pride in, which is something that the player he passed that allowed Chamberlin as a famed athletic phrase for a superior player taking care of business against his opponent’s he is better than, “a man against boys.”

“All those guys on that list were in great shape at the end of their career,” Carlos Boozer, a former teammate of James in his first stint with the Cavaliers said on the early Thursday edition of NBATV’s “Gametime.” “You saw LeBron over the course of his career his jump shot got better. His vision got better. His IQ got better. All his movements aren’t waisted. He does a great of knowing where to be at the right time, right place. What an incredible foot for him. Congratulations.”

For James, he is measuring his greatness this season, his first as a Laker as mentioned earlier is helping a young squad with a mix of veterans who have had checkered past with prior teams getting the “Purple and Gold” back to the postseason, which they have missed the past five seasons.  

“I don’t know how I feel right. I’m happy we were able to get another win,” he said “but any time my name is mentioned with some of the greats that played this game, I always think back to my hometown of where I come from. How far I’ve come. So, that’s it for me.” 

What really sticks out with James moving up this scoring chart is that he is and always has been a past first player, which is why when he came into the league as the No. 1 overall pick in 2003. While he has continued that, he also has shown in his career that he can carry the offensive scoring load, as the other two Hall of Famers that are in front of him on the all-time scoring list in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387 points) and Karl Malone (36,928 points) and future Hall of Famer in Bryant (33,643). 

To bring this into context, in his first stint with the Cavaliers, he was able to get them to The Finals in 2007 with basically just him as the main top gun with a bunch of role players, that he made better even at a young age. 

In his four-year stint with the Miami Heat, where he teamed up with All-Stars and future Hall of Famers in Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, James was able to raise him game to that elite level and that resulted in four straight Finals appearances and two straight titles captured in 2012 and 2013. 

Then to come back to the Cavs in the summer of 2014, teaming up with now Boston Celtics lead guard Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, who the Cavs acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves, they made four straight trips themselves to The Finals, winning the city of Cleveland’s first pro sports title in 52 years in 2016. 

With these Lakers, who do have some young parts in Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Josh Hart have a chance with some tweaking maybe before this season concludes and over the next three years have a chance to put another Laker banner into the rafters with James leading the way, while he moves up the scoring charts, with Jordan next in his sights. 

“It’s surreal, it’s surreal sometimes,” Ingram, who had 17 points versus the Trail Blazers on Wednesday night said. “You don’t really think about it sometimes until it actually happens, and you notice you’re playing with the greatest player in the world.” 

Ball, who had 11 points and six rebounds concurred by saying after the game, “I grew up watching him do that so it was pretty cool being on the floor with him.” “Just being out there, I didn’t know that he had the numbers he had tonight. But obviously he had a great game, and the stats showed it.”

Once James passes “MJ,” he would become the fourth player who has ties with the Lakers to be in the Top 4 on the all-time scoring list. To illustrate this point even further, five of the top six scorers in this league’s history played for the “Purple and Gold” at some point in their careers. 

One other thing that James and Chamberlin have in common is they had to deal with the fact that they did not always get the kind of respect from the referees getting a consistent amount of foul calls go in their direction when they attacked the basket. 

While James did get to the free throw line 15 times on Wednesday night, Lakers’ head coach Luke Walton felt he should have gotten there more. Lakers center Tyson Chandler, who was signed not too long ago after he was bought out by the Phoenix Suns during the game did not like how the Trail Blazers were hitting James when he did attack the rim, like when center Jusuf Nurkic made contact with James’ head when he attack the rim or when starting shooting guard CJ McCollum was called for a flagrant foul 1 after he hooked James’ arm and pulled him onto the floor. 

“I just don’t like to see any of my teammates get hit like that, especially a vet like LeBron who has taken enough hits throughout his career,” Chandler told ESPN after the win. “You don’t like to see that at all. I thought it was a little aggressive after the foul. Which is what upset me.” 

He continued by saying, “He goes in and he draws contact, a lot of times he’s so big and strong it doesn’t look like much, but it is, they’re fouls.” “He’s earned the respect [of the league]to get those type of calls. He’s not one of those guys who is going in there and [exaggerating contact] every play, so maybe that’s why [he doesn’t get the calls].” 

In the case of Chamberlin, he had his own set of unfair circumstances to deal with as the league widened the three-second area so the man also known as “The Big Dipper” would not just hop in and out of the lane to avoid being called for offensive three-seconds. The NBA also created the call of basket interference to keep Chamberlin from scoring when the ball was on rim-which he specialized in. 

“Well, it’s part of what makes working for the Lakers so amazing,” Walton said when a report asked him his feelings about James passing Chamberlin. “You have this history here…. For him to be up there speaks more to what he’s done over his entire career, obviously, as a player. The fact that he’s in a Laker jersey as he does anything more just adds to the legacy of what the Lakers are.”

On Wednesday night, LeBron James moved up another notch on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. He added another chapter to his greatness while it gave a chance for the Lakers and the entire basketball world to remember a game changing center that was larger than life. A player who was unstoppable in the pivot, just as unstoppable across the offensive board as the man who pasted him. 

The only difference between James and Chamberlin is that the late great led the Lakers to a title in 1972. James hopes to lead the Lakers to at least one Larry O’Brien trophy and possibly more.

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 9/26/18 7:30 p.m. NBATV’s “Team Preview,” with Jared Greenberg, Brendan Haywood, and David Griffin and “The Starters” Tas Melas and Trey Kerby; 11/15/18 2 a.m. edition of NBATV’s “Gametime,” with Casey Stern, Steve Smith, and Carlos Boozer; 11/15/18 www.espn.com story “LeBron James Passes Wilt Chamberlin for Fifth on NBA’s All-Time Scoring List,” by Dave McMenamin; www.espn.com/nba/standings; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_National_Basketball_Association_career_scoring_leaders; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilt_Chamberlin; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LeBron_James#Activism; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/LeBron_James.