LeBron James reached another statistical milestone when he passed Michael Jordan in career points scored in the regular season and playoffs combined. James was 13 points behind Jordan in total career points ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers' matchup with the Atlanta Hawks.
LeBron James scored 26 points in the Lakers' 107-106 win over the Hawks on Monday, bringing his total to 38,292 points. For those counting at home, that’s 31,381 points in the regular season and 6,911 points coming from the postseason. Jordan amassed a total of 38,279 points (32,292 regular season / 5,987 playoffs) in 15 seasons playing for the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards.
Shortly after James won his third championship in 2016, his first in a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform, he told Lee Jenkins of Sports Illustrated that his motivation for playing is none other than taking the much-debated title of the greatest player ever from his idol.
“My motivation,” LeBron James said, “is this ghost I’m chasing. The ghost played in Chicago.”
The three-time NBA Finals MVP added:
“What I’ve gone through is totally different than what he went through. What he did was unbelievable, and I watched it unfold. I looked up to him so much. I think it’s cool to put myself in position to be one of those great players, but if I can ever put myself in position to be the greatest player, that would be something extraordinary.”
Taking a scoring milestone from the other No. 23 is quite a lofty achievement, and one LeBron James will no doubt feel proud of achieving. His Airness is only 911 points ahead of James in regular-season points. At his current rate of 26.4 points per game, James will move ahead of Jordan in 35 games.
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