Especially over the last three seasons, LeBron James has continued to move past the biggest names in NBA history in the record books, both for the regular season and postseason. However, Saturday’s accomplishment of passing Kobe Bryant meant something a little different to James because of the personal connection he shared with Bryant from before his pro career even began.
James reflected on the full-circle nature of passing Kobe of all people, somebody he battled against and shared the floor several times as a member of USA Basketball. But rather than a tale of his wars on the court or in practice with USA Basketball, James shared a story about a young Kobe Bryant gifting LeBron a pair of his shoes during All-Star Weekend 2001, in Philadelphia, where he was last night with reporters.
That story alone could be its own documentary, especially considering all of the events that happened on the same weekend. LeBron played Carmelo Anthony and later that weekend, Bryant won All-Star MVP in Philly, where James was last night as he moved into No. 3 on the NBA’s All-Time scoring list.
