On Saturday night against the Denver Nuggets, LeBron James became the first player to score 40,000 points in the NBA. Unfortunately for LeBron, he wasn’t able to mark the occasion with a win, and he has now lost every game where he reached an important scoring milestone in the NBA.
– Passed Michael Jordan in scoring on March 6, 2019, lost 115-99 to the Nuggets
– Passed Kobe Bryant in scoring on January 25, 2020, lost 108-91 to the 76ers
– Passed Karl Malone in scoring on March 19, 2022, lost 127-119 to the Wizards
– Passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on February 7, 2023, lost 133-130 to the Thunder
– Reached 40K points on March 2, 2024, lost 124-114 to the Nuggets
It is quite bizarre how LeBron’s teams have managed to lose on all five occasions. The Lakers also lost to the Nuggets this season on the day that Kobe Bryant’s statue was unveiled, and they can’t seem to mark these big occasions with victories.
It seemed as if LeBron and the Lakers would get the win on Saturday, as they were up by 11 at one stage. It became a back-and-forth contest in the second half, however, and the Nuggets wrestled control of the game with a 9-0 run in the final minutes of the fourth quarter to come away with the win.
The time might have come to start talking about a “LeBron James Curse” at this point. Regardless, the defeats don’t take away from the feats LeBron achieved in those games. The 39-year-old has surpassed all the icons who played in the NBA to become the league’s all-time leading scorer and he is far from done.
James is putting up impressive averages of 25.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 7.9 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game in his 21st season in the NBA. The 20-time All-Star is rapidly closing in on Oscar Schmidt’s record for the most points scored in professional basketball history.
Schmidt scored 49,737 in his career with various clubs and the Brazilian national team. LeBron now has 49,629 points to his name (counting his points for Team USA and in All-Star games), and it is only a matter of time before he passes Schmidt. Hopefully, he and the Lakers win the game where he does it.
Anthony Davis Hilariously Told LeBron James To Stop Breaking Records
In his postgame interview following that loss to the Nuggets, Anthony Davis hilariously revealed he told LeBron to stop breaking records, as they always lose when he does.
“I was just telling him in the locker room, one, he might have to stop breaking records because we always lose anytime he break a record,” Davis said.
(starts at 29:48 mark):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcpHFngeofM
While Davis was only joking around here, what could have helped get the win was him playing better. He had just 17 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 blocks, and got completely outplayed by Nikola Jokic. Had Davis performed better on both ends of the court, the Lakers might have won.
As for LeBron, he finished with 26 points, 4 rebounds, 9 assists, and 3 steals on the night. James also admitted the Nuggets have the Lakers’ number, as this was the eighth straight game they had lost to Denver. Should these teams meet in the playoffs, it’s hard to see any other outcome other than a series win for the Nuggets.
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