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Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James bolstered his GOAT case after becoming the NBA’s all-time scoring leader.
LeBron James achieved that milestone in 2023 when he surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time scoring leader.
Even Abdul-Jabbar respects James for overtaking him. While that’s arguably LBJ’s biggest individual achievement, he has continued to break scoring records even after that.
This includes surpassing a unique Michael Jordan scoring record. Considering MJ is viewed as one of the most gifted scorers of all time, it further added weight to James’ GOAT case.
Austin Rivers says Michael Jordan could have been NBA’s all-time scoring leader
In 15 years, Michael Jordan built a phenomenal NBA resume that hardly any player in league history can rival. MJ could do a lot of things on the court, but his most celebrated skill was scoring.
Despite that, James being the all-time scoring leader hurts Jordan’s case as the best scorer of all time. However, former NBA player Austin Rivers believes Mike could have held that record.
“If Michael played 20-something years, he would probably be number one in scoring. If he didn’t take two years off to play baseball and then also retire early…
“Michael averaged 25 at 40 years old with the Wizards when he just came back randomly, and then retired again,” Rivers said on the Ringer NBA.
For context, Jordan finished his career with 32,292 points to his name. He is currently fifth on the all-time scoring leaders’ list.
Austin Rivers claims his Michael Jordan statement is ‘not even up for debate’
As Rivers pointed out, Jordan retired on two separate occasions before announcing his final retirement in 2003. By this time, he was a shell of himself as he failed to lead the Washington Wizards to the postseason for two consecutive seasons.
But even then, Rivers further stated: “So you’re telling me if he never took a break, and just played all those years through… and he’s top five or six on the list.
“Could you imagine if he played all the way through?”
“He would be number one, guys. It’s not even up for debate,” Rivers concluded.
While Rivers is adamant about his point, it’s no surprise that LBJ fans will ‘debate’ his hypothetical statement.
After all, in reality, James is in a league of his own with 42,184 points to his name when no player in NBA history has even managed to breach the 40k mark.
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