In Los Angeles On Tuesday night in downtown Los Angeles, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers was breaking the all-time scoring mark while Kyrie Irving was getting ready for his Dallas Mavericks debut across the street at a hotel.
James broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record to become the NBA’s new all-time leader in points, finishing the night with 38,390 points. The game came to a stop after James’ 15-foot fadeaway jumper over OKC Thunder forward Kenrich Williams officially put him on top and the basketball world celebrated a new record-holder.
Kyrie Irving said he wished he could’ve been in attendance to watch LeBron James and the Lakers, but was certainly watching from afar. Just, well, not that far.
“I was in my hotel room,” Irving told ClutchPoints after the Mavs defeated the Clippers on Wednesday night. “It’s kinda weird because it’s right across the street while history is taking place. So I’m over here telling my friends, like, ‘We’re literally within feet of history, but we’re not in the building.’”
The former Cleveland Cavaliers teammates played three seasons together from 2014-17, with Irving able to watch James continue his march towards the record while also winning a championship with him. A record that, at the time, Irving said seemed so impossible to reach that James never even brought it up once.
“But I mean, it’s pretty easy to tell where he’s going after playing with him,” Irving added. “And that’s when I felt like we were at our best when he was aggressive like that. And I’m glad that he can put some of the haters to rest saying that he’s not one of the greatest scorers, or if not *the* greatest score of all time. The stats prove it.”
LeBron James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record playing 150 fewer games than Cap, 3,705 fewer minutes, and making 2,236 more triples over his career.
“All in all, I just enjoy seeing him celebrate himself in those moments where a lot of hard work that doesn’t necessarily get talked about or seen by others is on full display. And I got a chance to play three special years with him. So it’s a celebration from me and my family to him and to witness history like that within the game that’s so special to all of us in this room and people all around the world. We should acknowledge when greatness is in front of us.
“And I know we have all the superlatives for LeBron and we got the stans on one side and you got the real supporters on one side. So I think it’s just great for the game that we can all come together collectively to celebrate somebody accomplishing something like that.”
Kyrie Irving on LeBron James' All-Time Scoring Record:
"It's a celebration from me and my family to him… I'm glad that he can put some of the haters to rest saying that he's not one of the greatest scorers, if not *the* greatest score of all time. The stats prove it." pic.twitter.com/IOzVnN9gKd
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) February 9, 2023
Now in his 20th NBA season at the age of 38, James has shown no signs of slowing down. He has played 44 of a possible 55 games for the Lakers and is averaging 30.2 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 7.0 assists on 50.8 percent shooting from the field.
For his career, LeBron James is averaging 27.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 7.3 assists on 50.5 percent shooting from the field, so it would appear that The King just keeps on getting better.
Source: https://clutchpoints.com
