Dave McMenamin | ESPNReading: 10 minutes
LeBron James’ record within reach
Sebastian Martinez Christensen explains the historical value of LeBron’s easily broken record.
LeBron James will become the sixth player in NBA history to reach his 21st season. What’s next for King James and the Lakers?
After eight NBA seasons with seven different teams, Christian Wood is determined to make an impression on Day 1 of his eighth season.
The Los Angeles Lakers held a voluntary player-led minicamp about a week before training camp, and Wood was on the court at San Diego State’s practice facility hours before the team’s scheduled meeting.
“I try to be one of the first people in the gym,” Wood told ESPN. “I think it was about 7:07:20 in the morning.
“The first person I saw was LeBron James. He was already sweating a lot.
“He’s got me beat.”
James, 38 and entering his 21st season with his third team, has overcome obstacles big and small along the way to get where he is today. He overcame a difficult upbringing in Akron, Ohio, against all odds. Beat the defender off the dribble after driving to the basket. Defeating playoff opponents one after another, winning 4 championship rings and reaching the NBA Finals 10 times. After being rabidly touted as a high schooler in a way the sport had never seen before, he surpassed even the grandest predictions of where he would end his career.
Sacramento Kings head coach Mike Brown, who was 35 when James started coaching with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2005, has been surprised by the Lakers star’s longevity.
“Wow, I got fired in Cleveland and I thought, ‘Man, I need to take a year off,'” Brown, 53, said before the Kings’ preseason game against the Lakers on Wednesday. “Then the second year came and I thought, ‘Man, this is cool.’ So I took the second year off.
“For him to be away (21) years in a row is ridiculous.”
While injuries have taken their toll (James has missed 27, 26 and 27 games over the past three years), looking back at last season reveals how he once again fell short of glory.
He surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the league’s all-time scoring leader (38,387 points), a record that Abdul-Jabbar held throughout his life. After dealing with a right foot injury (James said he “almost tore the whole tendon”), he returned and led the Lakers to the Western Conference Finals, extending their streak of 282 playoff games without playing.
What will happen next in 2021? As James begins his pursuit of a fifth championship, here are five things to consider:
1. How will the Lakers handle James’ playing time?
Lakers head coach Davin Hamm has James playing fewer minutes in 2022-23 than he did last season (35.5 minutes per game compared to 37.2 last season), but it’s still the most he has played since joining the Lakers in 2018 Second most playing time.
Los Angeles is allowing James to acclimate to this training camp and preseason and incorporate rest days as he prepares for real games, starting on Oct. 24 on the road against the defending champion Denver Nuggets.
Golden State Warriors beat Lakers again in preseason
In the first quarter of the game, the Los Angeles team dominated the first half with LeBron’s 12 points, Davis 13 points, and Prince 17 points. In the second quarter, the Warriors won 129-125. Curry scored 18 points and Kuminga scored 26 points.
“He deals with these so-called ‘unknown challenges’ very easily because he takes good care of himself and is constantly prepared,” Ham said before Wednesday’s game.
“Again, not just delivering service, but delivering service at the highest level. “We’ll watch it day in and day out and see where it goes. “
Los Angeles is intentionally building a team that not only has depth, but also what they consider to be organizational depth, so even if James’ minutes aren’t significantly reduced, he could spend the majority of his time on the court with the likes of Anthony Davis spend. With D’Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, Rui Hachimura, Gabe Vincent and Wood, they can dictate the moves rather than letting veterans spend their energy constantly setting the table.
2. What is James looking for in the record books?
James is 1,348 points away from becoming the first player in the NBA to accumulate 40,000 points. But if you add up all his points, including playoff points, he’s also closing in on an international record.
Oscar Schmidt is a Brazilian basketball player who played in multiple overseas leagues during his career from the mid-1970s to the early 2000s. He scored 49,737 points in all recorded games. The highest scoring player in history. James enters the season with 48,080.
For a guy who came into the league saying his goal was to one day be a “global icon,” passing Schmidt would be a full-circle moment.
According to data from the Elias Sports Bureau, if James plays an additional 549 minutes and surpasses Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, he can also rise to the NBA history of minutes (regular season and playoffs). game).
There are some other great top 10 lists you can climb:
• After playing 56 games, his career ranking will rise from 9th to 6th, surpassing Kevin Willis, Kevin Garnett and Karl Malone.
• James needs a triple-double to break his tie with Jason Kidd for fourth place.
• With 30 regular-season wins, he would pass Malone and John Stockton for fourth place.
• If he makes 292 more free throws, he will surpass Kobe Bryant and become the third-most player in history.
• Another 22 steals would put him at No. 8, ahead of Clyde Drexler.
3. How does James compare to others who have played in the league this long?
When James takes the court against the Nuggets, he will become just the sixth player in the league’s 77-year history to reach 21 or more seasons, joining Garnett, Willis, Vince Carter, Robert Parish Join Dirk Nowitzki.
These five players averaged a combined 29.0 points per game in 21 seasons, with Garnett averaging 7.6 points per game. James is averaging 28.9 points per game this season.
It will inevitably obliterate the production level of the player at this stage of his career.
Only once has a player scored 25 points or more in a game in his 21st season or longer, let alone come close to averaging points per game. Nowitzki scored 30 points in the final home game of 2019 against the Phoenix Suns.
“It’s about my health,” James told ESPN when asked if he would continue to extend his prime. “And my mindset, if I can keep my mind fresh. No matter what your thoughts are, other Everything will fall into place. So staying clear-headed, staying coordinated, staying intact during the marathon will allow my body to perform afterward.”
4. What does James think of Los Angeles’ roster?
James had not commented on the Lakers’ offseason moves until media day, only sharing photos on his Instagram Stories of all the players signed by Los Angeles.
When he finally talked about the roster, he gave a ringing endorsement.
“I’m glad we were able to get our core back,” James said at media day, “and then bring in a lot of really, really, really good players that can help us move forward.”
Remember how James criticized the team’s lack of “laser” after the Lakers’ season-opening loss to the Golden State Warriors last October? He also praised the team’s efforts in the Lakers’ preseason win over the Brooklyn Nets on Oct. 9, when Los Angeles shot 20 of 55 from 3-point range.
“We have better shooters this year,” James said after the win. “We had a lot of guys last year who shot really well from beyond the arc.”
A solid three-point arsenal would be a welcome addition to the Los Angeles offense. The Lakers’ three-point shooting percentage in the first four games of last season was the worst in league history, finishing 25th in the league and shooting 34.6% from outside. Despite adding quality shooters to the roster after the trade deadline, Los Angeles shot just 33.5 percent from three-point range in the playoffs, with James shooting just 26.4 percent on 6.6 attempts per game.
Plus Taurean Prince, who shot 38.1 percent from 3-point range for Minnesota; Wood, who shot 37.6 percent for Dallas; and Vincent, who shot 37.6 percent from 3-point range in Miami’s playoff run He shot 37.8 percent from the field in the process; finding more opportunities for Russell, Hachimura and Reaves (who shot 50 percent from the field at the FIBA World Cup this summer) should improve that area.
5. How will James be different in Year 21?
The Lakers opened media day, and Davis (not James) was the first player to address reporters, allowing the veteran’s voice to set the tone.
It’s a subtle change in James’ opening statement that has been common with past teams, but a not inconsequential change in schedule.
Shortly after, James told ESPN that Davis was the “face” of the Lakers and that he was handing the torch to Davis whether he was ready to accept it or not.
Behind the scenes, James spent the summer working out one-on-one with Rui Hachimura, and the 25-year-old forward visited James multiple times along the way to learn from a mentor prepared to impart more than two decades of knowledge. experience.
James said the time he missed last season with a foot injury ultimately made him more excited about the game, adding that watching and analyzing his teammates made him a fan of their games.
He may not be showing any outward signs of slowing down, but James’ perspective has shifted.
Lakers vice president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka said the team “worked” with James to develop a plan “to see it through to the end.” In other words, keep him as stocked up as possible heading into June.
James, long praised for his unselfish play with the ball in his hands, may be better at getting the ball to teammates more and more and choosing his spots to showcase the skills that brought him to the Hall of Fame. At some point he became famous.
“He understands how much his teammates value him and how much they support him,” Hamm told ESPN. “And he also knows how to get them to support him… Building a balanced team will help him be even better. , hoping to be efficient.”