National Basketball Association

Skip Bayless on LeBron James' scoring record: 'It just felt meant to be'

Updated Feb. 8, 2023 5:29 p.m. ET

The King has assumed his thrown as the NBA's all-time leading scorer.

LeBron James' stepback jumper to overtake Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's long-held record will go down as one of the most memorable moments in NBA history.

"Undisputed" cohost Shannon Sharpe was in the building Tuesday night to witness James' unforgettable accomplishment.

"Just the atmosphere, the moment, the buzz, you could feel the electricity in the building," Sharpe reflected on the night. "It was just a magical moment. … To know that LeBron James became the all-time leader in points in NBA history, and I was in attendance, that’s a moment I'll never forget."

Skip Bayless wasn't at Crypto.com Arena to see the record fall, but that didn't mean he wasn't invested. The "Undisputed" cohost was confident from the moment James took the floor that it was going to be a memorable night.

"You could tell from dribble number one. He was a man on mission," Bayless said. "He just had the body language of ‘I’m going to do this.' … Denzel [Washington] and Jay-Z were there, you give me those two, now it is official, it is a night of nights, a moment of moments.

"It just felt meant to be. And the amazing part to me was that he did it in three quarters."

LeBron James becomes NBA's all-time leading scorer

Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe react to LeBron James passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.

So how impressive was the record in Sharpe's eyes?

"I remember the 100-dash record used to be broken damn near every year," Sharpe said. "But when you hold a record for 40 years … look at the level at which he's still playing in Year 20 at the age of 38. … I can assure you he's not on the down. Nobody can say LeBron James is not a top-10 NBA player … you do realize the guy is top-five in assists? You're never going to see that again. … To average 27 points a game over 20 years? … I don't know if that's not the most impressive record in basketball history."

It's no secret that Sharpe believes "GOAT James" is the greatest to ever lace ‘em up, and while Bayless disagrees, he’s fully appreciative of James' impressive body of work. This stat from Bayless sums up just how improbable James' greatness is.

"Cam Thomas of the Brooklyn Nets … has scored over 40 points for three straight games. He's now the youngest player to ever do that. … If we take young Cam, and we say LeBron is going to stop today and never score another point, it would take Cam averaging 40 a game for 936 games in a row, that's play all 82 every year for 11-plus seasons … to eclipse what LeBron just did. It's impossible."

Now that James officially owns one of the most impressive records in all of sports, has Bayless warmed up to the idea of him being the greatest basketball player of all time?

"I take nothing away from what LeBron just accomplished, but if we switch gears to GOAT, it ain't even close." Bayless concluded. "I don't even understand how to begin to make a case."

The debate over the greatest NBA player of all time will continue on, but that doesn't take away from a special moment in time Tuesday night, one in which NBA fans will never forget.

"The people know what they witnessed," Shape said. "And they don’t know if they’ll ever witness something like that again."

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