NBA legend LeBron James has been virtually synonymous with NBA basketball around the globe for nearly two decades. During one regal stretch, the league couldn’t seem to host an NBA Finals without King James, as if his presence was required by the rules. (James led teams to eight straight NBA Finals appearances.)
But now it’s James’s 20th NBA season. And while he is still playing at an exceptionally high level, a quick glance at the leaderboards in all the major NBA individual statistical categories reveals a fact that in previous years would be unthinkable.
LeBron James’s name is missing. Here’s a snapshot of the top 5 players in points, rebounds, assists, and steals per game, as well as FG%, 3-Point % and Fantasy ppg.
James, you’ll see, goes missing.
James does surface in the Top 15 statistically in some categories. Notably, while chasing down Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most total points in NBA history — a record he’s expected to surpass this season — James is averaging 24.9 ppg, good for 13th in the NBA.
But it is clearly a different NBA environment to scan the page and not see James’s name on any of the top statistical charts. To find James in the Top 5, you have to scroll down to “Fast Break Points Per Game” in the Miscellaneous category — where James is second to Giannis Antetokounmpo.
James is an all-around player, as versatile as anyone who’s ever played the game — and his dominance hasn’t always been linked to individual statistics. (That said, you don’t get to be the NBA’s all-time leading scorer without filling up the stat sheet.)
One difference between James going missing this year and what transpired in previous years when he lingered outside the Top 5 lists is this: Earlier in his career, James was seen as sacrificing his individual stats for the greater good of the team, which usually thrived on his generosity. Now the Lakers are in a tailspin and a James rise in the stats may be their best and only hope.
.jpg){kind=link}