LeBron James etched his name further into NBA history on Friday night, surpassing Michael Jordan’s record for the most 30-point games in league history during the Los Angeles Lakers’ matchup against the Atlanta Hawks.
With an 18-foot jumper at the 5:58 mark of the fourth quarter, LeBron James reached 30 points for the 563rd time in his career, breaking Jordan’s long-standing record of 562 games set in 2003. While Jordan achieved this feat over 1,072 games during his 15-season career, James broke the record in his 1,523rd game, extending his achievement over 22 seasons.
As a child in Akron, Ohio, James idolized Jordan, and the significance of surpassing his childhood hero was not lost on him. In March 2019, James moved past Jordan to claim fourth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, a milestone that brought him to tears on the Lakers’ bench. At the time, James described Jordan as “an inspiration” and “the lightning in a bottle” that fueled his desire to emulate him.
On the same night he broke Jordan’s record, James also passed Dirk Nowitzki (1,522) for the fourth-most games played in NBA history.
At 40 years old, James continues to defy age, showing no signs of slowing down in his record-tying 22nd season. Just one night earlier, he scored 38 points against the Portland Trail Blazers, tying Jordan’s previous 30-point game record. During that performance, James knocked down seven 3-pointers, becoming the third-oldest player in NBA history to score 30 or more points in a game, trailing only two performances by Jordan during his time with the Washington Wizards.
James, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, holds several longevity records, including the remarkable streak of 1,253 consecutive games scoring at least 10 points, a record that shattered Jordan’s previous mark of 866 games.
As he continues to break records, LeBron James solidifies his legacy as one of the greatest players in NBA history, cementing his place among the sport’s legends.
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