It feels like there aren’t many more records for LeBron James to break anymore, but The King has at least one more in him — and it’s fast approaching.
In just a few games, James is expected to become the first player in NBA history to record 40,000 career points. He already holds the NBA scoring record after passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar last February.
James exits the All-Star Break with 39,868 points, and considering he’s averaging 24.8 points per night, some simple math should be all that’s needed to decipher when he’ll become the first member for the 40K Club.
If LeBron keeps up his scoring average, he’ll hit 40,000 in six games. That would set him up to do so at home on March 2 against the Denver Nuggets in a nationally televised game on ABC. So the only question now is whether or not he gets there sooner or later.
BetMGM already broke down the odds for when he’ll hit 40K and while March 2 is the favorite, it’s not the matchup bettors are running to wager on.
The majority of the money bet at MGM (17.8 percent) has LeBron reaching 40K on Feb. 28 against the Clippers. That would mean he scores at least 35 points per game in the Lakers’ three contests before then, which puts him just 27 points away when he faces the Clips. While it’s certainly possible, James hasn’t posted three straight 35+ games all season. He’s scored 35 or more in back-to-back games just once this year.
That makes the Wizards or Nuggets matchups most likely. However, if James is unable to play his normal amount of minutes — or needs extra recovery time — some of those longer shot bets may be worth a flier. Especially with such a long home-stand coming up.
The Lakers can make sure LeBron is able to break the threshold in Los Angeles while also keeping him healthy.
