For a good 12-year span from the late 1960s to the early 1980s, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was absolutely the toast of the NBA.
The first ballot Hall of Famer and 19-time All-Star averaged north of 28 points per game with 14.1 rebounds during that span in splitting time between the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers.
Now, roughly 35 years after retiring from the game, The Tower of Power finds himself back in the news.
Current Lakers star LeBron James is just 36 points away from breaking Kareem’s all-time NBA scoring record. King James could make history as early as Tuesday night at home against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
As gracious as he’s ever been, Abdul-Jabbar is not making this about himself. He’s more than prepared to toast James once the Lakers star from generations later does indeed surpass the all-time great.
“Not only will I celebrate his accomplishment, I will sing his praises unequivocally,” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on LeBron James nearing his scoring mark.
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Comparing LeBron James to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Back in April 5 of 1984, Abdul-Jabbar broke the NBA record previously held by the late-great Wilt Chamberlain. It came with his Lakers in the midst of another run to the Finals.
It also came against the Utah Jazz in Las Vegas in a game that saw the legendary center score 22 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field. Kareem’s patented sky hook represented the record-breaking shots.
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (career stats): 24.6 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 3.6 APG, 56% shooting
It took Kareem less than 15 years to break Chamberlain’s scoring record. He would go on to play another five seasons with the Lakers, earning an All-Star appearance each year en route to helping Los Angeles win two more NBA titles.
As for LeBron James, he’s currently in the midst of his 20th NBA season and continues to go strong. The dude is averaging 30.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.5 assists on 51% shooting at 38 years old.