There was a chat that LeBron James from the Los Angeles Lakers had with Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic during last year’s All-Star Game that blew up online because the mics picked it up. Do you remember that one? Of course you do.
They were talking about who James played with during his first All-Star Game.
“It was me, Wilt Chamberlain, Bob Cousy … that was my first All-Star Game back in ’68, I think,” James joked. Of course, that’s not the case.
James’ real first All-Star Game was in 2005 — not 1968, of course — and he hasn’t missed one since, which means this Sunday’s All-Star event in San Francisco will be his 21st and will add to his record number of appearances.
LeBron James Talks Being an All-Star
“It’s always special and very humbling and I don’t take it for granted, being an All-Star,” James said about the honor. “When I was a kid, I always watched the All-Star Game and dreamed of being on that floor. It’s always special and I’m pretty happy about it.”
This season, he hit over 70 million fan votes for All-Star selection, which is a new record, has been the top vote-getter 10 times (another record) — and that’s just the tip of the iceberg for James’ amazing All-Star achievements.
James — the oldest player currently in the league and the NBA’s all-time leading scorer — will be on the team picked by Shaquille O’Neal this weekend, along with Stephen Curry from Golden State, Kyrie Irving from Dallas, Boston teammates Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Kevin Durant from Phoenix, Damian Lillard from Milwaukee, and James Harden from the Los Angeles Clippers.
LeBron James and the All-Stars By the Numbers
This will be James’ 21st All-Star selection, two more than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. It’ll also be his 21st time playing, three more than Abdul-Jabbar and six more than Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan.
He’s been named an All-Star starter 21 times, too, which is six more than Bryant, who is next on the list. If his team makes it to the championship game in the new mini-tournament, he could technically start two games on Sunday. And all 21 of those starts have been in a row, which is eight more than Bob Cousy’s second-place streak of 13 straight All-Star starts.
As for MVP awards, James is a three-time All-Star MVP, tied with Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal, and Oscar Robertson. Wow. Just, wow.
That puts him tied for third on the all-time NBA list: Kobe Bryant and Bob Pettit both have four All-Star MVPs.
When it comes to points, James is in first place. This record could last a really long time, especially if this new mini-tournament format where the first team to 40 points wins sticks around.
James has scored 434 points in All-Star Games, way ahead of Kobe Bryant in second place with 290 and Kevin Durant in third with 268. Michael Jordan is fourth with 262, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is fifth with 251.