LeBron James passes Kobe Bryant for third on all-time NBA scoring list
LeBron James was a teenager when he first met Kobe Bryant at a youth basketball camp.
“I was just listening,” James said of hearing Bryant’s advice that day. “I was just trying to soak everything up I could. I remember one thing he said was that if you want to try and be great at it, and want to be one of the greats, you’ve got to put the work in.”
James put in the work and followed Bryant’s path – from making the leap from high school straight to the NBA, to winning NBA titles, and, eventually, to playing in Los Angeles. With a lay-up on Saturday night, James no longer chased Bryant, he zoomed past him for third place on the NBA’s career scoring list
“I’m just happy to be in any conversation with Kobe Bryant, one of the all-time greats to ever play,” James said.
James entered Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers 18 points shy of passing Bryant, and the lay-up gave him 33,644 points. Bryant finished his career with 33,643, all with the Lakers.
“Continuing to move the game forward @kingjames. Much respect my brother #33644,” Bryant tweeted.
James waved to the Philadelphia crowd that gave him a rousing standing ovation when the mark was announced. James went on to score 29 points on Saturday but could not prevent his team losing 108-91.
The 35-year-old James entered the game averaging at least 25 points (25.2 ppg) for the 16th straight season. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the NBA’s career scoring leader with 38,387 points and Karl Malone is second at 36,928. James is on pace to pass Abdul-Jabbar in about three seasons. The top-four scorers in NBA history played for the Lakers, who signed James as a free agent in 2018. James, who played in eight consecutive NBA finals, has 6,911 postseason points with Cleveland and Miami that do not count in the official total.
James would have a “dream come true” when he lined up side-by-side with Bryant as teammates in the 2008 Olympics as part of the “Redeem Team” and led Team USA to a gold medal in Beijing. “There’s just too much. The story is just too much,” James said. “The story doesn’t make sense. Make a long story short, now I’m here in a Lakers uniform, in Philadelphia where he’s from.”
Top 10 scorers in NBA history
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - 38,387
2. Karl Malone - 36,928
3. LeBron James - 33,655
4. Kobe Bryant - 33,643
5. Michael Jordan - 32,292
6. Dirk Nowitzki - 31,560
7. Wilt Chamberlain - 31,419
8. Shaquille O’Neal - 28,596
9. Moses Malone - 27,409
10. Elvin Hayes - 27,313
- Lakers star now on 33,655 regular-season points in career
- Pair played together for Team USA at 2008 Olympics
LeBron James was a teenager when he first met Kobe Bryant at a youth basketball camp.
“I was just listening,” James said of hearing Bryant’s advice that day. “I was just trying to soak everything up I could. I remember one thing he said was that if you want to try and be great at it, and want to be one of the greats, you’ve got to put the work in.”
James put in the work and followed Bryant’s path – from making the leap from high school straight to the NBA, to winning NBA titles, and, eventually, to playing in Los Angeles. With a lay-up on Saturday night, James no longer chased Bryant, he zoomed past him for third place on the NBA’s career scoring list
“I’m just happy to be in any conversation with Kobe Bryant, one of the all-time greats to ever play,” James said.
James entered Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers 18 points shy of passing Bryant, and the lay-up gave him 33,644 points. Bryant finished his career with 33,643, all with the Lakers.
“Continuing to move the game forward @kingjames. Much respect my brother #33644,” Bryant tweeted.
James waved to the Philadelphia crowd that gave him a rousing standing ovation when the mark was announced. James went on to score 29 points on Saturday but could not prevent his team losing 108-91.
The 35-year-old James entered the game averaging at least 25 points (25.2 ppg) for the 16th straight season. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the NBA’s career scoring leader with 38,387 points and Karl Malone is second at 36,928. James is on pace to pass Abdul-Jabbar in about three seasons. The top-four scorers in NBA history played for the Lakers, who signed James as a free agent in 2018. James, who played in eight consecutive NBA finals, has 6,911 postseason points with Cleveland and Miami that do not count in the official total.
James would have a “dream come true” when he lined up side-by-side with Bryant as teammates in the 2008 Olympics as part of the “Redeem Team” and led Team USA to a gold medal in Beijing. “There’s just too much. The story is just too much,” James said. “The story doesn’t make sense. Make a long story short, now I’m here in a Lakers uniform, in Philadelphia where he’s from.”
Top 10 scorers in NBA history
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - 38,387
2. Karl Malone - 36,928
3. LeBron James - 33,655
4. Kobe Bryant - 33,643
5. Michael Jordan - 32,292
6. Dirk Nowitzki - 31,560
7. Wilt Chamberlain - 31,419
8. Shaquille O’Neal - 28,596
9. Moses Malone - 27,409
10. Elvin Hayes - 27,313
