On Sunday against the Brooklyn Nets, LeBron James was cruising along for three quarters. The Los Angeles Lakers played outstanding basketball overall in the first half to take a 67-44 lead at intermission, but their lead got trimmed to 11 at the end of the third quarter.
That’s when James decided to put his foot down. He went into volcano mode in the fourth period, scoring 17 points while hitting on all four of his 3-point attempts. That gave him 40 points on the night and L.A. a 116-104 win.
That meant the 39-year-old moved past Michael Jordan for the most career 30-point games in NBA history with 672.
LeBron James now holds the record for the most 30-point games in NBA history
1. LeBron James: 672
2. Michael Jordan: 671
3. Wilt Chamberlain: 557(h/t @georgemikan ) pic.twitter.com/R660d3EVN2
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) April 1, 2024
James’ critics will likely say this record is merely a function of his playing 21 seasons. While that is somewhat true, putting up the type of numbers he is at age 39 while being more efficient than he has been in years isn’t easy, and it takes quite a bit of dedication to one’s conditioning.
