(ANSA) – LOS ANGELES, 27 SEPT – At the dawn of the 20th season in the Nba, LeBron James indicated his priority: to stay away from injuries. The Los Angeles Lakers star could break Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s points record. “Being available to the team is the most important thing. Obviously there are injuries that you cannot avoid, but being one of the team leaders, present on the field, is the most important aspect,” said the 37-year-old champion during the traditional pre-season Media Day.
Last year the four-time NBA champion (twice with Miami, once with Cleveland, another with Los Angeles) was unable to bring the Lakers to the playoffs, also due to numerous physical problems. James has only played 56 times out of 82 games, but still averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists.
Which allowed him to overtake former Utah Jazz star Karl Malone for second place in the standings. He enters the 2022-2023 season at 1,325 points from the all-time record held by the legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. At this rate he should beat him early next year, but he assures that that’s not his goal: “The only time I thought about it was when someone posted something on social media and I was scrolling through my news feed. And every time I say to myself ‘wow!’, I am a little amazed. I have never trained with the record in mind, but to make sure I am in the best possible shape at the start of the race. The NBA’s most coveted record is a great lesson in humility for me, and it’s fantastic. ” (HANDLE).
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