LeBron James Reflected On Breaking Michael Jordan’s Playoff Record


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The Cleveland Cavaliers advanced to the NBA Finals with a lopsided victory over the Boston Celtics on Thursday night and, somehow, that wasn’t the lead story. Granted, it is an impressive accomplishment for LeBron James and company to reach yet another NBA Finals but the outcome of the series was hardly in doubt as Game 5 arrived.

Beyond that, James made history in surpassing Michael Jordan on the all-time playoff scoring list and that accomplishment made for fantastic theater both during and after the game.

In fact, James was prompted about the record while on the podium and he reflected thoroughly on what it meant to him.

When asked about wearing No. 23 and the circumstances by which he claims the record, James said the following:

“I wear the number because of Mike. I think I fell in love with the game because of Mike, just because of what he was able to accomplish. When you’re watching Michael Jordan it’s almost like a god. So I didn’t think I could be Mike. So I started to focus myself on other players and other people around my neighborhood, because I never thought that you could get to a point where Mike was. So I think that helped shape my game.

“I think the biggest thing for me sitting here today after breaking the all-time scoring record in playoff history is that I did it just being me. I don’t have to score the ball to make an impact in the basketball game. That was my mindset when I started playing the game. I was like, if I’m not scoring the ball, how can I still make an impact on the game? It’s carried me all the way to this point now, and it’s going to carry me for the rest of my career because scoring is not No. 1 on my agenda.”


In addition, James was asked about the point in which he realized he could potentially reach Jordan’s level of play:

“At the end of the day, for my name to come up in the discussion with the greatest basketball player of all time, it’s like, ‘Wow.’ Like I said, I did pretty much everything that MJ did when I was a kid. I shot fadeaways before I should have. I wore a leg sleeve on my leg and folded it down so you saw the red part. I wore black and red shoes with white socks. I wore short shorts so you could see my undershorts underneath. I didn’t go bald like Mike, but I’m getting there.

But that will be post-career, though. That’s the only thing I didn’t do. But other than that, I did everything Mike did. I even wore a wristband on my forearm. I didn’t do the hoop earring, either. That was Mike. But I did everything Mike did, man. I wanted to be Mike, so for my name to come up in any discussion with Michael Jordan or Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar] or all these guys that’s paved the ways for Tristan (Thompson) and Kevin (Love), myself and Swish (J.R. Smith), it’s a wow factor. I don’t really have nothing to say.”

There is certainly a (vocal) portion of the NBA fan base that simply will never acknowledge even a competitor for Jordan’s title as the greatest player in league history. With that said, James’ assault on the record books will likely continue in the coming years and the force of will exerted in reaching seven consecutive NBA Finals is a wonderful reminder to what he has been able to do.

It is plain to see that James idolized Jordan growing up, much in the way that any presumptive basketball player from his generation would have. Not everyone could actually ascend to the heights of LeBron James, though, and it is becoming clearer by the day that he lives in rarefied air.

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