LeBron James is on the verge of passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA's all-time leading scorer. He believes he's already passed Michael Jordan in the GOAT debate.

“I’m gonna let everybody else decide where (the scoring record) puts me,” LeBron told Southern California News Group. “It’s not for me to say now, ‘OK I’m this or that.’”

What I bring to the table as a basketball player … I feel like I’m the best basketball player that ever played the game. That’s just my confidence, that’s just what I bring to the table, what I possess. But as far as if the scoring record gets me to another level, I don’t know.”

The scoring record highlights LeBron's unprecedented longevity, which is perhaps the best case for him over MJ. At age 38 in Year 20, LeBron is having one of the most impressive statistical seasons of his career: 30.0 points, 50.5% shooting, 8.5 rebounds, 7.1 assists per game. Doc Rivers recently posited that while Jordan is the greatest player ever, LeBron has had the “greatest career.”
The other argument for LeBron over Michael — which James alluded to in his above comment — is his historically elite combination of passing and play-making (especially at his size). One week ago, LeBron eclipsed Mark Jackson and Steve Nash to move into fourth place on the league's all-time assists list in a win over the New York Knicks.
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“It’s amazing because that’s just what I love to do — get my guys involved and try to put the ball on time and on target with my guys,” he said at Madison Square Garden. “Any time you’re linked with some of the greats (is a cool thing). Mark Jackson played here, he was drafted by the Knicks, so it’s super cool. Obviously, you know with Nash, I played against him for many many years and his ability to pass the ball was very uncanny.”

Whether LeBron breaks Kareem's record tonight or Thursday, his legacy is secured, and he'll be eternally in the middle of GOAT discussions. The only questions that remain are whether he can return the Lakers to glory and if he teams up with Bronny.