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LeBron James Had Simple Answer for Why He’s Still Dominant After 50,000th Point

Andy Nesbitt

LeBron James scored his 50,000th point of his career Tuesday night.
LeBron James scored his 50,000th point of his career Tuesday night. / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
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LeBron James made more wild NBA history Tuesday night as he became the only player to score over 50,000 combined regular season and postseason points in his career. The 40-year-old accomplished that feat while scoring a game-high 34 points in the Lakers' 136-115 victory at home over the New Orleans Pelicans.

James has been a dominant force since entering the NBA straight out of high school way back in 2003 and he's still crushing it in his 22nd season, as he was just named the Western Conference Player of the Month for February.

James was asked after the game how he keeps playing at such a high level.

"Just not falling out of love with the process," James said. "Continuing to fall in love with the process, that's the hardest thing, every single year. You know it's going to be a long season. It's 82 games, 41 of them are on the road. It's a lot of travel. And as you get older, it affects you even differently. If you have a family, it affects you even differently. So the process. Trying not to fall out of love with the process is the hardest thing."

The Lakers have now won seven straight games and sit at No. 2 in the Western Conference. With the addition of Luka Doncic and the continued strong play from James, it seems like Los Angeles is going to be a problem in the postseason.

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Andy Nesbitt
ANDY NESBITT

Andy Nesbitt is the assistant managing editor of audience engagement at Sports Illustrated. He works closely with the Breaking and Trending News team to shape SI’s daily coverage across all sports. A 20-year veteran of the sports media business, he has worked for Fox Sports, For the Win, The Boston Globe and NBC Sports, having joined SI in February 2023. Nesbitt is a golf fanatic who desperately wants to see the Super Bowl played on a Saturday night.

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