LeBron James is set to break the NBA’s all-time scoring record, with only 36 points to go until he surpasses Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record of 38,387 points.
We have done a deep dive on James’ stats this season and past seasons to see if he is up to the task against OKC tomorrow on their home court.
On Saturday night, James scored 27 points, nine rebounds and six assists in the Lakers’ most recent game, which was a 131-126 loss to New Orleans.
“I’m tired as hell,” James said after the game but added, “I’ll be ready to go on Tuesday.”
Unlike LA, who will have had a three day break, the Thunder will be coming off a back-to-back against Golden State, so may be feeling a little bit tired.
Although when asked about James breaking the record, OKC shooting guard Giddey has the utmost faith in his teammate Lu Dort.
“We’ve got one of the best defenders in the league that’ll do a good job on that,” Giddey said.
Last season, James had 33 points, six assists and five rebounds in one game against the Thunder, so he is certainly capable of recording a high-scoring game tomorrow.
During the 2020-21 season, he averaged 26.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and 8.7 assists in three games against OKC.
His most recent 37 point game against the Thunder was in February of 2018 when he was with the Cavs.
Throughout his entire career, the four time MVP’s highest scoring game against OKC was 44 points in December of 2009 with the Cavs and his second-highest was back in 2013 when he played for Miami where he notched 39 points.
38-year-old LeBron’s current PPG average is 30 points, so it seems like The King is more than capable of surpassing a record Abdul-Jabbar has held since 1984 with just one more game.