Report: LeBron James doesn’t care about reaching Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan in titles

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James doesn’t ruminate over reaching the same number of NBA titles as Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan in his career, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe.

“Anyone who thinks LeBron is sitting there chasing that ghost every night ruminating on, ‘Kobe has got five, Michael’s got six, I’ve got four,’” Lowe said. “That’s not apparently LeBron’s mindset. That’s what I’ve heard privately for a long time.”

James currently has four NBA titles, and he’s been to the NBA Finals 10 times in his career, registering more total appearances than Jordan and Bryant. However, Bryant won five NBA titles in his career (all with the Lakers) and Jordan won six (all with the Chicago Bulls), including pulling off two three-peats.

A 20-time All-Star, James has accomplished things in his career that Bryant and Jordan never did, such as becoming the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record during the 2022-23 season.

There is still time for James to catch both players when it comes to NBA titles, but according to Lowe, James isn’t solely focused on chasing that in his career.

The Lakers came close to getting back to the NBA Finals in the 2022-23 season, but the team fell short against the Denver Nuggets. If James wins another title in Los Angeles, it would be his second with the franchise.

That’s another area where James differs from Bryant and Jordan, who won all of their titles with one franchise. James has taken the Miami Heat (twice), Cleveland Cavaliers (once) and Lakers (once) to the promised land.

While some people may not view that as an important accomplishment, James also had an eight-season run where he made the Finals in every campaign. Jordan and Bryant never accomplished such a feat in their NBA careers.

There’s no doubt that adding another title to his insane resume would only further James’ legacy as one of – if not the greatest – basketball players of all time. The 39-year-old may have more time left to chase a fifth title than one would expect, as he’s still playing at an insanely high level in the 2023-24 season.

James is currently averaging 24.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game while shooting 52.0 percent from the field and 39.5 percent from 3-point range.

The Lakers hold the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference at the All-Star break, but the team has won three straight games and seven of its last 10 matchups. James showed last season that he can lead the team on a long playoff run even if the team ends up in the play-in tournament.

It’ll be interesting to see if the Lakers superstar can lead the franchise back to the top of the NBA and secure another title in his storied career.