LeBron James is set to break the NBA’s all-time scoring record this season.
LeBron is poised to catch Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who scored a total of 38,387 points in his career.
Let’s look at ways that you can turn LeBron’s history-making shot into a winning NBA pick.
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar entered the league with Milwaukee Bucks in 1969 and played there until 1975.
He was then a member of the Los Angeles Lakers from 1975 until he retired in 1989. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played a total of 1,560 games in his career.
Abdul-Jabbar finished with an average of 24.6 points per game. In his career, he made 15,837 field goals.
Over that time he made one three-point shot. He also made 6,712 free throws.
LeBron James
LeBron James entered the league in 2003. He played with the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2003 to 2010.
He played with the Miami Heat from 2010 to 2014. He returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2014 to 2018. And like Kareem, he is finishing his career in Los Angeles with the Lakers.
LeBron is currently sitting at 37,062 points. He has played 1,366 games.
He is averaging 27.1 points per game he has made 13,543 field goals, 2,140 three-point made, and 7,836 free throws.
LeBron vs. Knicks
Currently, LeBron is 1,325 points behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. If we were to extrapolate his career average of 27.1 points per game that would put him on pace to break the record in his 48th game played this season.
The NBA odds reflect this if you’re looking at the game in which he is expected to break the record.
On January 31st, 2023 LeBron will be in New York to play the Knicks, which is right around 48 games played depending on how many games he sits out for load management.
This is the favorite by top-rated sportsbooks with the idea that LeBron and the players love being on the big stage of Madison Square Garden in New York. To me, this is a much better bet than February 2nd, 2023 at the Indiana Pacers.
LeBron vs. Celtics and Nets
Other games which caught my interest to make the bet would be the ones on January 28th against the Boston Celtics or January 30th against the Brooklyn Nets.
If LeBron were to sit out some games, on February 11th against the Golden State Warriors is an interesting bet at 18 to 1 as well. Will LeBron want to break the record in front of his rival Steph Curry?
The safest bet is that LeBron will break the record on the road. At -150, it displays that around 48 games in, LeBron will be in the middle of a road trip.
Points on the Road or at Home?
There is the idea that he might want to wait until he’s back at home in front of the Los Angeles fans, but LeBron does not have the closest relationship with the Lakers fans, and setting the record in a place like New York might be more appealing to LeBron.
Of course, you can look at the market of whether will LeBron break the scoring record in the 2022-23 season? Yes is -1000 and No is +550.
The only way that LeBron would not break the record is by injury, and he’s been an incredibly durable player.
Plus, it’s no fun to make a bet and root for injury. Because of its low likelihood and the inherent bad karma of rooting for an injury, I do not suggest a No wager.
One More to the List
LeBron will etch his name in the history books and add another incredible accolade to his already formidable list of accomplishments.
After all the hype around him entering the league, it seemed impossible for him to meet expectations.
Incredibly he has surpassed expectations and become one of the greatest players of all time.
Madison Square Garden
I will not be surprised to see LeBron break this record in Madison Square Garden.
LeBron is a student of basketball history and understands the Garden’s special relationship with NBA fans and how it is considered the biggest stage for basketball.
I would not be surprised to see the team load manage his playing time so he’s in the position to break this record on the biggest stage in the biggest city.
Our NBA bets for LeBron’s history-making run will be LeBron to break the record on the road (-150) and LeBron to break the record in Madison Square Garden (+550).
NBA Pick: LeBron to Break the Record on the Road (-150) at Bovada (visit our Bovada Review)
NBA Pick: LeBron to Break the Record in Madison Square Garden (+550) at Bovada
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
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