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Milestone Moments: LeBron James Through the Years

On Feb. 7, 2023, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the all-time leading scorer in NBA history. With James achieving yet another milestone, here is a look at some of the memorable performances, historic accomplishments and other major moments that have helped define his 20 seasons in the NBA.

February 18, 2002

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED COVER

James appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a junior at St. Vincent–St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio.

June 26, 2003

DRAFTED NO. 1

James was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft.

October 29, 2003

NBA DEBUT

James made his NBA regular-season debut with Cleveland in a road game against the Sacramento Kings, recording 25 points, nine assists, six rebounds and four steals.

April 20, 2004

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

The 19-year-old James became the youngest player to win the Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Award after a season in which he averaged 20.9 points, 5.9 assists and 5.5 rebounds – the third first-year NBA player (after Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan) with a 20-5-5 season.

February 20, 2005

FIRST ALL-STAR GAME

James made his NBA All-Star Game debut and became the second-youngest player to play in the event (20 years and 52 days), finishing with 13 points, eight rebounds and six assists as a starter to help the Eastern Conference defeat the Western Conference 125-115 in Denver.

March 20, 2005

FIRST 50-POINT GAME

James scored 56 points against the Toronto Raptors, the first of his 14 regular-season games with 50 or more points. At the time, he became the youngest player to score 50 points in an NBA game (20 years and 80 days) and set the Cavaliers’ single-game scoring record.

January 21, 2006

5,000 POINTS

During a 51-point performance for Cleveland against the Utah Jazz, James became the youngest player in NBA history to reach 5,000 career points (21 years and 22 days).

FEBRUARY 19, 2006

YOUNGEST ALL-STAR GAME MVP

James became the youngest MVP of the NBA All-Star Game (21 years and 51 days) as he scored 29 points to help the Eastern Conference rally past the Western Conference 122-120 in Houston.

April 22, 2006

HISTORIC PLAYOFF DEBUT

James recorded 32 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in his playoff debut to lead Cleveland past the Washington Wizards 97-86 in Game 1 of a first-round series. He became the third player to have a triple-double in his first playoff game, joining Magic Johnson and Johnny McCarthy.

January 6, 2007

RECORD 10-POINT STREAK

James started his NBA-record streak of consecutive games with 10 or more points, which stood at 1,140 through games of Feb. 7, 2023. He broke Michael Jordan’s previous record of 866 straight games while playing for Cleveland in a game against the New Orleans Pelicans on March 30, 2018.

May 31, 2007

KING OF THE PALACE

James scored 48 points, including Cleveland’s final 25 and 29 of its final 30, in a 109-107 double-overtime victory against the Detroit Pistons in Game 5 of the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals at The Palace of Auburn Hills. James’ performance lifted the Cavaliers to their third straight victory over Detroit and a 3-2 series lead. Cleveland then won Game 6 to reach the NBA Finals for the first time.

June 7, 2007

FIRST NBA FINALS

James made his NBA Finals debut as Cleveland faced the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of the 2007 NBA Finals. It was the first of his 55 NBA Finals games and the first of his 10 NBA Finals series played.

February 27, 2008

10,000 POINTS

James became the youngest player to reach 10,000 career points (23 years and 59 days), achieving the milestone with Cleveland in a game against the Boston Celtics.

March 21, 2008

CAVS' SCORING LEADER

James became the Cavaliers’ all-time scoring leader, achieving the milestone in a game against Toronto.

August 24, 2008

FIRST OLYMPIC GOLD

James won the first of his two Olympic gold medals, helping USA defeat Spain 118-107 in the gold medal game at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

May 4, 2009

FIRST NBA MVP

James won the first of his four Kia NBA MVP Awards. At age 24 in his sixth season, James became the first Cavaliers player to earn the honor.

May 22, 2009

FIRST PLAYOFF BUZZER BEATER

James made a game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer to lift Cleveland past the Orlando Magic 96-95 in Game 2 of the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals, tying the series at 1-1. It was the first of his five game-winning buzzer-beating shots in the playoffs.

March 19, 2010

15,000 POINTS

James became the youngest player to reach 15,000 career points (25 years and 79 days), achieving the milestone with Cleveland in a game against the Chicago Bulls.

May 2, 2010

BACK-TO-BACK NBA MVP

James won his second Kia NBA MVP Award in a row, becoming the 10th player to be named MVP in back-to-back seasons.

July 8, 2010

MOVE TO MIAMI

James announced that he would be joining the Miami Heat after playing his first seven seasons with the Cavaliers. Two days later, Miami acquired James from Cleveland as part of a sign-and-trade deal.

February 20, 2011

ALL-STAR TRIPLE-DOUBLE

James recorded 29 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in the 2011 NBA All-Star Game in Los Angeles. He became the second player to have a triple-double in the All-Star Game, joining Michael Jordan.

May 12, 2012

FIRST NBA MVP WITH HEAT

James won his third Kia NBA MVP Award and first with Miami. With his third MVP in four seasons, he became the first player to win at least three MVPs since Michael Jordan in the 1990s.

May 20, 2012

EPIC PLAYOFF PERFORMANCE

With Miami trailing the Indiana Pacers 2-1 and playing Game 4 on the road in the 2012 Eastern Conference Semifinals, James finished with 40 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists as the Heat defeated the Pacers 101-93 to even the series.

June 7, 2012

SEASON-SAVING SENSATION

With Miami facing elimination, James responded with 45 points, 15 rebounds and five assists in a 98-79 road victory over Boston in Game 6 of the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals. The Heat went on to defeat the Celtics in Game 7 to advance to the NBA Finals.

June 21, 2012

FIRST NBA CHAMPIONSHIP

James won the first of his four NBA championships as he recorded 26 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds in the Heat’s series-clinching 121-106 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 of the 2012 NBA Finals. He earned the first of his four NBA Finals MVP Awards.

August 12, 2012

SECOND OLYMPIC GOLD

James won the second of his two Olympic gold medals, helping USA defeat Spain 107-100 in the gold medal game at the 2012 London Olympics.

January 16, 2013

20,000 POINTS

James became the youngest player to reach 20,000 career points (28 years and 17 days), achieving the milestone with Miami in a game against the Golden State Warriors.

May 5, 2013

FOURTH NBA MVP

James won his fourth Kia NBA MVP Award – his second in a row and fourth in five seasons. He became the fifth player to win at least four MVPs, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan and Bill Russell.

June 20, 2013

BACK-TO-BACK NBA CHAMPION

James scored 37 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as the Heat defeated the Spurs 95-88 in Game 7 to win the 2013 NBA Finals. Miami won its second straight NBA championship and James earned his second NBA Finals MVP Award in a row.

March 3, 2014

CAREER-HIGH 61 POINTS

James scored a career-high and Miami franchise-record 61 points – including an 8-for-8 start from three-point range – in a 124-107 victory against the Charlotte Bobcats.

July 11, 2014

RETURN TO CLEVELAND

James announced that he would rejoin the Cavaliers after playing four seasons with the Heat.

November 2, 2015

25,000 POINTS

James became the youngest player to reach 25,000 career points (30 years and 307 days), achieving the milestone with Cleveland in a game against the Philadelphia 76ers.

June 13 and 16, 2016

NBA FINALS COMEBACK

With the Cavaliers trailing the Warriors 3-1 in the 2016 NBA Finals, James posted 41 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and three blocks in Game 5 (June 13) and 41 points, eight rebounds, 11 assists, four steals and three blocks in Game 6 (June 16) as Cleveland won both games to force a deciding Game 7.

June 19, 2016

WON FOR THE LAND

James had 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists as the Cavaliers defeated the Warriors 93-89 in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals to earn their first NBA championship and become the first team to rally from a 3-1 series deficit to win the NBA Finals. In an instantly iconic play, James blocked a layup attempt by Andre Iguodala to keep the game tied with just under two minutes remaining. James was named Finals MVP for the third time after averaging 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 8.9 assists, 2.57 steals and 2.29 blocks in the series.

February 6, 2017

A SIGNATURE SHOT

James made one of the most memorable – and improbable – shots of his career when he banked in a turnaround, fadeaway three-pointer with 0.3 seconds remaining in regulation to tie Cleveland’s game against Washington. James finished with 32 points, 17 assists and seven rebounds in the Cavaliers’ 140-135 overtime victory.

May 21, 2017

J. WALTER KENNEDY CITIZENSHIP AWARD

James received the 2016-17 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award – and later the 2018 Offseason NBA Cares Community Assist Award – for improving the educational opportunities of disadvantaged youth in his hometown of Akron, Ohio.

May 25, 2017

all-time playoff scoring leader

James became the NBA’s all-time playoff scoring leader, reaching the milestone in Cleveland’s series-clinching 135-102 victory over Boston in Game 5 of the 2017 Eastern Conference Finals. James passed Michael Jordan, who scored 5,987 playoff points.

November 3, 2017

57 POINTS

In the second-highest-scoring game of his career, James had 57 points (on 23-of-34 shooting from the field) to lead Cleveland past Washington 130-122.

January 23, 2018

30,000 POINTS

James became the youngest player and seventh overall to reach 30,000 career points (33 years and 24 days), achieving the milestone with Cleveland in a game against San Antonio.

February 18, 2018

THIRD ALL-STAR GAME MVP

In the first NBA All-Star Game without a matchup between the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference, James earned the third of his three All-Star MVPs after scoring 29 points and making the go-ahead layup with 34.5 seconds remaining to lead Team LeBron past Team Stephen 148-145 in Los Angeles.

MAY 5, 2018

ANOTHER PLAYOFF BUZZER BEATER

James banked in a 10-foot shot at the buzzer to complete a 38-point performance and give Cleveland a 105-103 victory over Toronto in Game 3 of the 2018 Eastern Conference Semifinals, extending the Cavaliers’ series lead to 3-0. The shot came 10 days after his game-winning, buzzer-beating three-pointer against Indiana in Game 5 of the First Round gave Cleveland a 3-2 series lead.

May 27, 2018

EIGHT STRAIGHT NBA FINALS

James recorded 35 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists to lead Cleveland to an 87-79 road victory over Boston in Game 7 of the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals, earning his eighth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals. He then became the sixth player to play in eight straight NBA Finals, joining five players from Celtics teams in the 1950s and 1960s.

May 31, 2018

50-POINT NBA FINALS GAME

James scored a career-playoff-high 51 points against Golden State in Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals, recording the first 50-point Finals game in 25 years.

July 9, 2018

LBJ TO L.A.

James signed with the Lakers after playing four seasons in his second stint with Cleveland.

November 14, 2018

passing wilt

During a 44-point, 10-rebound, nine-assist performance for the Lakers against the Portland Trail Blazers, James passed Wilt Chamberlain for fifth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.

February 25, 2019

TOP 10 IN POINTS AND ASSISTS

James became the only player to rank in the top 10 in both all-time points and assists, reaching the milestone with the Lakers in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies. Already fifth in career points, James moved into 10th in assists by passing Andre Miller. (James has since climbed to fourth place in assists.)

March 6, 2019

PASSING MJ

James passed Michael Jordan for fourth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, reaching the milestone with the Lakers in a game against the Denver Nuggets.

January 25, 2020

PASSING KOBE

James passed Kobe Bryant for third place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, achieving the milestone with the Lakers in a game against the 76ers.

September 16, 2020

ALL-NBA TEAM RECORD

James set the record for most All-NBA Team selections with 16, passing 15-time honorees Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan.

October 11, 2020

FOURTH NBA CHAMPIONSHIP

With James recording 28 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists, the Lakers defeated the Heat 106-93 in Game 6 to win the 2020 NBA Finals and earn their record-tying 17th championship. James won his fourth NBA championship and fourth NBA Finals MVP Award. He also became the first player to be named NBA Finals MVP with three different franchises.

February 18, 2021

35,000 points

James became the third player (along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone) to score 35,000 career points, reaching the milestone with the Lakers in a game against the Brooklyn Nets.

October 21, 2021

NBA 75TH ANNIVERSARY TEAM

James was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

February 20, 2022

ALL-STAR HOMECOMING

On a night when he was among those honored during a halftime ceremony celebrating the NBA 75th Anniversary Team, James played in his record-tying 18th NBA All-Star Game and made the game-winning shot to lift Team LeBron past Team Durant 163-160 in Cleveland.

March 5, 2022

VINTAGE PERFORMANCE

At age 37, James scored 56 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Lakers past the Warriors 124-116. He joined Kobe Bryant as the only players 37 or older to score at least 55 points in a game and produced the first 55-and-10 performance by a Laker since Shaquille O’Neal in 2000.

March 13, 2022

10,000 ASSISTS

James recorded his 10,000th career assist, making him the first player in NBA history to reach 10,000 in all of points, rebounds and assists. He achieved the milestone with the Lakers in a game against the Phoenix Suns.

March 19, 2022

PASSING MALONE

James passed Karl Malone for second place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, achieving the milestone with the Lakers in a game against Washington.

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