CREATED BY SPORTS BETTORS FOR SPORTS BETTORS
LET’S HEAR YOUR STORY
LOS ANGELES — The King has now become the scoring king.
So much was expected of LeBron James when he graced the cover of Sports Illustrated as a youngster. He was supposed to lead teams to championships, to win MVP awards, and to become a global celebrity.
Even with all of the plaudits James has received during his two-decade reign in the NBA's spotlight, passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time scorer was a bridge too far. His four MVPs trail Bill Russell (five), Michael Jordan (five), and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (six) for the league's lone individual honor, and plenty of players from different eras have more championships — with Stephen Curry matching James with four rings with the Golden State Warriors' latest title in June. However, he is the only leader of the score list. James cemented his place in history with a stepback fadeaway basket at the conclusion of the third quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.
Abdul-Jabbar dropped-stepped and sky-hooked his way to 38,387 points, overtaking Wilt Chamberlain with a sky hook on the right wing against the Utah Jazz in 1984, then putting the record practically out of reach before retiring in 1989. James has no such move and is unjustly branded as "not a scorer," yet he has managed to earn the record with devastating consistency, surpassing Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, and Jordan in the top five all-time scorers.
Even as James enters what is believed to be his twilight years, the scoring chase has become more of a priority. While he has only ever led the league in scoring average (in 2008), he has had two of his greatest four scoring seasons in a Laker uniform, averaging nearly 30 points per game this season and 30.3 in 56 games in 2021-22.
Surprisingly, he's averaging more as a Laker than he did when he was considerably younger. During his initial time in Cleveland, he was virtually a reluctant scorer, but his high volume forced him to accomplish a lot. He was the most full, deadly version of himself in Miami, adding efficiency and becoming a champion 3-point shooter.
His magnificence has persisted and beyond time. Even if James does not fully embrace whatever trend the league is embracing, he assimilates himself just enough to ride the wave.
It's true for all of the big scorers. After beginning his career as a relentless driver to the rim, Jordan evolved into the best midrange shooter of the hand-check era. Bryant improved his game over his career, owing to the fact that he was never the athlete that Jordan or James were.
Malone developed into a top elbow shooter after beginning his career as a pick-and-roll specialist with John Stockton — emphasis on the roll because to his powerful body.
Daniel Weinman was crowned winner of the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event on Monday, taking home a record breaking $12.1 million in winnings. Weinman had to outlast the other 10,043 entrants to take home the prize and get his hands on his share of live poker’s largest ever prize pool – a staggering $93,399,900. As well as taking home the prize money, 35-year-old Weinman also got his hands on the WSOP Main Event bracelet. The huge bracelet contains 500 grams of 10-karat yellow gold, as well as 2,352 various precious gemstones.
Daniel Weinman won the World Series of Poker's main event world championship on Monday in Las Vegas, earning $12.1 million along the way. Playing in the tournament for a 16th year, Weinman was tops in a deep pool of 10,043 players vying for $93.39 million. His victory came after just 164 hands at the final table. "I was honestly on the fence about even coming back and playing this tournament," the 35-year-old Atlanta native told reporters afterward. Weinman's final table featured Jan-Peter Jachtmann, who landed in fourth place and took home $3 million, as well as Toby Lewis, who finished seventh and secured $1.42 million. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the main event's entry pool far outpaced the previous record of 8,773 set in 2006. "I've always kind of felt that poker was kind of going in a dying direction, but to see the numbers at the World Series this year has been incredible," Weinman said. "And to win this main event, it doesn't feel real. I mean, [there's] so much luck in a poker tournament. I thought I played very well." Steven Jones finished second, securing $6.5 million. And Adam Walton settled for third and a $4 million prize.
Your experience on this site will be improved by allowing cookies.
