LeBron James showed the Blazers who is the King as he passed Wilt in scoring
By Tron Griffin
LeBron James passed Wilt on the all-time scoring list as the Lakers breezed by the Trail Blazers
There are stars and superstars in the NBA. LeBron James is without a doubt a superstar. The four-time NBA MVP has been the face of the league for over a decade. I mean three NBA championships, three Finals MVP awards, three All-Star game MVPs, NBA Rookie of the Year and two Associated Press Athlete of the Year awards to name a few.
James has accomplished almost everything a basketball player can accomplished. Last night in Los Angeles, he added another accomplishment to his future first ballot Hall of Fame resume by passing Wilt Chamberlain for fifth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.
More importantly to the Lakers, James came to the rescue when most of the Lakers were struggling in the first half while JaVale McGee kept them in the game by scoring 12 points in the first 17 minutes of the game.
More from Sir Charles In Charge
- Dillon Brooks proved his value to Houston Rockets in the 2023 FIBA World Cup
- NBA Trade Rumors: 1 Player from each team most likely to be traded in-season
- Golden State Warriors: Buy or sell Chris Paul being a day 1 starter
- Does Christian Wood make the Los Angeles Lakers a legit contender?
- NBA Power Rankings: Tiering all 30 projected starting point guards for 2023-24
I must admit that watching Lonzo Ball shoot 3-pointers is painful. I have never seen a professional basketball player completely miss the rim as often as Ball, but in the second quarter, he hit back-to-back 3-pointers to keep the Lakers in the game.
James and Kyle Kuzma followed Ball, by hitting 3-pointers before James took over with several no look passes to wide-open teammates before hitting two huge 3-pointers to give the Lakers a 59-55 lead at the half.
McGee started the third quarter by scoring a couple of quick buckets for the Lakers. James fed Kyle Kuzma with a nice no look pass to give the Lakers a 73-69 lead. Moments later, James hit a pull-up 3-pointer followed by throwing Tyson Chandler a lob pass for a dunk. A play or two later, James scored on an amazing reverse layup.
A minute later, James found Ball for a 3-pointer; then he blocked Nik Stauskas shot, ran down the court, and converted on an amazing spin move layup to give the Lakers a 87-80 lead with 2:43 remaining in the third quarter. Once the quarter was over, James had 32 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists.
The fourth quarter was not competitive as the Lakers kept a double digit lead with James on the bench for the first 5 minutes of the quarter. The way the Blazers were playing LeBron probably could have rested on the bench for a couple more minutes.
Once James re-entered the game, his hot streak continued with more Magic Johnson like no look passes and James passing Wilt Chamberlain on the NBA’s all-time scoring list as the Lakers beat the visiting Blazers 126-117.
James finished the game with 44 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists and 3 blocks to lead the Lakers. McGee finished with 20 points.
Philadelphia 76ers: 5 trade targets that could bolster their shooting. light. Related Story
Next up for the 8-6 Lakers is three consecutive road games at Orlando, Miami and Cleveland.
Damian Lillard led the Blazers with 31 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds.
The Blazers will continue their six game road trip with tough games against Minnesota, Milwaukee and Golden State.