There’s a new king in town, but he’s already familiar to millions. After two decades of domination, LeBron James is officially the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
Imagine being called ‘The Chosen One’ when you’re still a teenager learning algebra and how to drive, but then meeting and surpassing to every single expectation. That’s what LeBron did on Tuesday night, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the top scorer in NBA history.
He broke an unbreakable record, one that will now continue to grow with every bucket LeBron scores for the rest of his career. He lived up an impossible amount of hype and still has more left in the tank.
The G.O.A.T. discourse is what it is; it’s a debate of nuance and not statistics but LeBron’s accomplishments speak for themselves. Anyone trying to argue in a moment of total triumph like we witnessed on Tuesday night is doing themselves a disservice.
John Ireland was on the local radio call when LeBron finally passed Kareem with a signature shot late in the third quarter. There will be plenty of iconic sound bites that come out of the moment, including an epic NSFW mic drop by LeBron, and Ireland’s call will be right up there at the top of the pile.
Listen to Lakers radio call of LeBron James breaking NBA scoring record
“There it is,” Ireland exclaimed, expertly invoking Prince as the shot drained and LeBron celebrated. “All hail the new king in town. Young and old gather around, from one iconic Laker to another. The King, LeBron James, has passed The Captain Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
LeBron now stands alone.”
Just watch, listen, and let the chills wash over you:
As called by @LAIreland on Lakers radio: pic.twitter.com/1ZthxaphIE
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) February 8, 2023
It’s insane to think that LeBron has accomplished all that he has in his career and there’s still more to his story. He’s only 38 years old and likely has as many years left as it will take for Bronny to make it to the NBA so they can play together.
LeBron has reached the House Money Era of his career, where everything he does from here on out is icing on the cake. How many legendary players can essentially coast in the twilight of their career and still be operating on a level like we’re witnessing with LeBron?
Toss that into your next G.O.A.T. conversation.
As long as there’s basketball there will be generationally great players to play the game and NBA records will broken and lost. The game will adapt and change and different stars from different eras will leave their mark on the sport.
However, there will only be one LeBron James. All hail the Kid from Akron who grew up to be King.