LeBron James surpassed Michael Jordan’s NBA record for 30-point games by reaching 563 | NBA news
LeBron James broke Michael Jordan’s NBA record with 30 points in the Los Angeles Lakers’ victory over Atlanta on Friday night.
With the turnaround with 5:58 left in the last of his 30 points, James scored at least 30 points in the regular season for the 563rd time in his career, surpassing the mark set by Jordan in 2003.
Jordan set his record with 1,072 games played in 15 seasons, while James surpassed him in his 1,523rd game in 22 seasons.
“It’s very humbling,” James said. “Every time I’m mentioned with any of the greats, and arguably the greatest to ever play the game, super-cool. That’s someone I idolized as a kid and I wear 23 because of him.
“So to know that I can sit here and be in the room or in a conversation or whatever, you mention MJ, that’s super-duper dope for me, because I’m a kid from where I’m from.”
James turned 40 last week, and he is among the few remaining active players who witnessed Jordan in person in his 1990s heyday with the Chicago Bulls. He studied and admired Jordan during his childhood in Akron, Ohio.
When James passed Jordan for fourth on the NBA’s career scoring list in March 2019, the moment brought him to tears on the Lakers bench. He called Jordan “an inspiration” and “lightning in a bottle for me, because I wanted to be like him.”
The Lakers announced James’ latest statistical superlative in their locker room following the Lakers’ 119-102 win over Atlanta. Chicago’s Anthony Davis also made sure James kept his accomplishment in perspective.
“It bothers me,” the Lakers big man said with a grin. “But it took him another seven seasons…No, actually, growing up, I was more of a No. 1 LeBron. That was my era. So that’s obviously a heck of an accomplishment. I think he’s probably No. 1 in everything in at this moment.
“I’ve been here long enough to witness so many accomplishments, so I’m definitely grateful to be here, and we just want to keep building.”
James scored his final two buckets on turnovers, fadeaway jumpers that looked more than a little like the famous shot at the heart of Jordan’s mid-range game. James said youth coaches didn’t always like his attempts to emulate Jordan’s turnaround because it compromises the shooter’s balance, but he has spent his entire basketball life perfecting it as a weapon.
“(Jordan) was more of a guy who was losing his left shoulder,” James said. “I kind of go in the opposite direction. But just two masters of their craft who put in work and work and work to the point where it’s unprotected. It just works. It’s work and dedication.”
Coincidentally, on Friday night, James also passed Dirk Nowitzki (1,522) for fourth place in the most regular season games played in NBA history. James has already played the most postseason games (287) in NBA history.
But James shows absolutely no signs of slowing down in his record-setting 22nd season: He scored 38 points against Portland a night earlier to match Jordan’s 30-point mark.
James became the best scorer in the NBA last season, and he also holds several additional longevity records. He scored at least 10 points in 1,253 consecutive games over the past 18 years, obliterating Jordan’s record from 1986 to 2001 (866).
