Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
LeBron James has proved he is one of the greatest players in National Basketball Association history and passed the 20,000 point mark this week. I think James has a very real chance to challenge the NBA scoring record held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. James became the youngest player to reach 20,000 and if he can keep up his scoring for the next five to seven years, the possibility is definitely there.
James is a player that is difficult to stop for any player and he has shown that even after moving to the Miami Heat. I think the next big step for James would be to see where he is at when he reaches 30,000 points. If James can be at 30,000 points by the age of 33, I think that he will break the scoring record. James just turned 28 in December and he probably will have to play until he is 38 or 39 to have any chance for the record.
I feel confident that James will make it into his mid-30s but maybe not 38 or 39. The drive to at least pass Michael Jordan on the scoring list will keep James in the game longer. James could end his career being a better player than Jordan which would be high praise from me as I think Jordan is the best player in NBA history. I want to see James get close to the record at the least and breaking the record would just be icing on the cake for me. While fans hated the decision, James is showing that all that negative publicity isn’t hurting him in filling the hoop up.
Andy Schmidt is a columnist/writer for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter @ASchmidtSports or like his Facebook page.
