In the 2022-23 NBA season, Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James is projected to pass fellow Lakers great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the leading scorer in the history of the league.
Abdul-Jabbar racked up 38,387 points in his storied career while James currently has 37,062 points. If he averages anywhere between 20 and 30 points per game in the upcoming season, he could easily surpass Abdul-Jabbar and claim the top spot.
James has always been highly deferential to icons from the NBA’s past. However, that doesn’t really seem to be the case when it comes to Abdul-Jabbar.
When James was recently asked about the fact that he could soon be passing Abdul-Jabbar on the all-time scoring list, James made it seem like he doesn’t really care about the record or about Abdul-Jabbar.
LMFAOOOOOO pic.twitter.com/DR3YUm2qwh
— 𝘾𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙎𝙝𝙪𝙗𝙝 ⁶𓅓 (@OVOLakeShow) October 4, 2022
“No thoughts and no relationship,” James said.
The video clip has been making the rounds on NBA Twitter, and a lot of fans have pointed to moments in time in which Abdul-Jabbar was somewhat critical of James.
Back in 2021, Abdul-Jabbar had some strong words for James after the four-time MVP said that it was everyone’s personal choice whether or not to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
“I’m a huge fan of LeBron James, both as one of the greatest basketball players ever and as a humanitarian who cares about social injustice,” wrote Abdul-Jabbar on his Substack. “I have written his praises many times in the past and undoubtedly will in the future. I admire him and have affection for him. But this time LeBron is just plain wrong — and his being wrong could be deadly, especially to the Black community.”
Later in the year, Abdul-Jabbar criticized James once again for a dance that he did after scoring a big basket in a game.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on LeBron's big balls dance:
"Why do you need to do a stupid, childish dance? It doesn't make sense…..GOATs don't dance." pic.twitter.com/6uxAcTMHSd
— BossHogg (@6Hogg6) December 4, 2021
Those are just two notable instances in which Abdul-Jabbar took aim at James, but it is possible that there have been even more instances that have not gotten media attention. Either way, it is clear that there is a certain amount of contention between the two legends.
Surely, James will celebrate when he ultimately claims the top spot on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. It will be interesting to see if the two end up exchanging any words, either in person or on social media, when that moment finally does come.
