Ever since he came out of high school in 2003, LeBron James has always been compared to Michael Jordan. In fact, him wearing the number 23 jersey actually rubbed a lot of people the wrong way, as they saw it as a sign of disrespect towards His Airness.
Now, 17 years later, it’s pretty safe to say that LeBron has built a legacy of his own. He’s written his name in history and record books and, while most people still have Michael Jordan ahead of him in the GOAT conversation, he’s almost unanimously a top-3 player in NBA history.
As a matter of fact, LeBron has even taken some records away from Jordan throughout his career. Obviously, the King has played more games and his durability is one of the main reasons why he’s so great. Today, we’re going to let you know about those 5 times James knocked down Jordan in the history books:
Career Points
LeBron James 34,087 – Michael Jordan 32,292
Michael Jordan holds the highest points-per-game average in NBA history at 30.1 PPG. Still, he played 2 fewer seasons than LeBron, including a sophomore year where he only played 18 regular-season games. Thus, it’s not crazy to see James take him down in the all-time leading scorer ladder.
Now, LeBron only trails Karl Malone (36,928), and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387) in the all-time leading scorer list. If he continues to stay healthy and play at the highest level, there’s no doubt that he’ll retire as the league’s all-time leading scorer.
Playoff Points
LeBron James 6,911 – Michael Jordan 5,987
On that same note, LeBron James has made more playoff appearances than Michael Jordan. He’s made it to 9 NBA Finals thus far and has never lost in the first round of the playoffs. Also, he’s been featured in more Game 7s than His Airness.
James is currently 5th in all-time playoff games played with 235. He’s also the all-time leader in playoff minutes (9,820, 42.0 MPG), so it’s normal to see him score almost one thousand points more than Jordan, who played made just 179 appearances in the postseason.
Points In All-Star Games
LeBron James 385 – Michael Jordan 262
LeBron James is tailor-made for the All-Star Game. He’s made 16 All-Star Game appearances (2nd all-time) and will most likely pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record of 18 games. He’s also the all-time leader in field goals, points, three-pointers, points, and turnovers.
Let’s put the numbers into context once again. Michael Jordan retired from the NBA twice, so he would’ve at least matched James’ 16 games. However, James still has the edge in points per game (24.1 to Jordan’s 20.2) in All-Star Games.
Most 30-Point Playoff Games
LeBron James 110 – Michael Jordan 109
Michael Jordan is the ultimate playoff scorer. He’s the league all-time leader in playoffs points-per-game (33.45), holds the record for the most 40 and 50-point games, and is the only player in NBA history to score at least 15 points on every single one of his playoff games.
Nevertheless, LeBron James took him down for the most 30-point performances in the playoffs, although he’s played 56 more games than Jordan. To put it in context, there were just 70 games in which Jordan didn’t top the 30-point plateau in the playoffs.
Most Consecutive Double-Digit Scoring Games
LeBron James 959 – Michael Jordan 866
LeBron James has played a grand total of 1,258 regular-season games in the NBA. He’s scored in double-digits in 959 straight games. In fact, the last time the King scored fewer than 10 points was on January 5, 2007; when he scored 8 on 3-13 shooting vs. the Milwaukee Bucks.
In fact, LeBron James has more 50-point games (12) than games with fewer than 10 points (8) throughout his 17-season career. Also, no other player from that Cleveland Cavaliers’ squad that played next to him in 2007 is still playing in the league. Let that sink in.
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