30,000 points is no mean feat. And LeBron James is set to break through today against the San Antonio Spurs, needing just 7 more points to reach the figure. The future hall of famer will be joining elite company in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387), Karl Malone (36,928), Kobe Bryant (33,643), Michael Jordan (32,292), Wilt Chamberlin (31,419) and Dirk Nowitzki (30,837).
It’s been an absolute pleasure to watch King James in action over the last 15 years – there’s been many highs and many lows, but along the way there has been some incredible sneaker moments, too. So today, ahead of the King’s next career milestone, we look back at 30 of his best sneaker moments during his 30,000 career points. And boy, is there some gems in this list.
October 23, 2003: LeBron laces up the ‘White Cement’Air Jordan 3 in an NBA pre-season game against the Wizards
October 29, 2003: Nike Air Zoom Generation
LeBron makes his NBA debut against the Sacramento Kings.
February 13, 2004: Nike Air Zoom Generation ‘Wheat’
LeBron sports the AZG Wheats in the Got Milk? Rookie Challenge.
January 19, 2005: Nike Zoom LeBron II ‘Hardwood Classic’ PE
In beating the Blazers, James became youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double.
February 20, 2005: Nike Zoom LeBron II ‘All-Star’.
LeBron makes his NBA All-Star debut.
January 21, 2006: Nike Zoom LeBron III.
LeBron dropped 51 on the Jazz en route to becoming the youngest player to 5,000 points in NBA history.
February 19, 2006: Nike Zoom LeBron III ‘ASG’.
James wins his first NBA All-Star Game MVP Award.
April 22, 2006: Nike LeBron 20.5.5 PE.
LeBron becomes the youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double in the playoffs.
November 13, 2006: Nike Zoom LeBron IV ‘NYC Graffiti’.
LeBron made the debut of this now-classic colorway at MSG in a win over the Knicks.
December 1, 2006: Nike Zoom LeBron IV ‘Fruity Pebbles’ PE.
Another now-classic LeBron 4 colorway was debuted in a win against the Hawks.
February 18, 2007: Nike Zoom LeBron IV ‘ASG Graffiti’ PE. King James took to the 2007-2008 NBA All-Star Game in what has become one of the most sought after LeBron PE’s to date.
February 17, 2008: Nike Zoom LeBron V ‘ASG’.
LeBron wins his second NBA All-Star Game MVP, becoming the youngest player to capture a second All-Star MVP.
January 7, 2009: Nike Zoom LeBron 6 ‘Superman’ PE LeBron brought out this fan-favorite PE in a 30-point smashing of the MJ-owned Bobcats.
January 23, 2009: Nike Zoom LeBron 6 ‘Yankees’.
LeBron celebrates the newly inaugurated President, Barack Obama.
May 5, 2009: Nike Zoom LeBron 6 ‘MVP’.
Nike celebrates the King’s first NBA MVP with a special edition of the VI in a playoff win over the Hawks.
December 4, 2009: Nike Air Max LeBron 7 ‘Think Pink’.
The Cavs’ partnership with local clinic Box-Out Breast Cancer inspired these on-court PE’s in a win over the Bulls.
December 25, 2010: Nike LeBron 8 V2 ‘Christmas’.
While Kobe was wearing the infamous ‘Grinches,’ LeBron was a bit more festive in this Christmas edition of the 8.
January 11, 2010: Nike Air Max LeBron 7 ‘HWC’ PE
These still cause quite a stir amongst LeBron collectors, and its evident as to why.
LeBron, who’s vocal on injustice issues, pays tribute to the memory of Trayvon Martin, an African-American teenager tragically killed in Florida.
June 21, 2012: Nike LeBron 9 P.S. Elite ‘Home’
LeBron finally got that ring, trumping a talented Oklahoma Thunder for his first NBA title.
October 30, 2012: Nike LeBron X ‘Gold’ PE.
LeBron opened the 2012-2013 season wearing these PEs, as he received his first championship ring.
January 16, 2013: Nike LeBron X PE.
LeBron James became the youngest player in NBA history to score 20,000 points in a W over the Warriors.
May 6, 2013: Nike LeBron X ‘What the MVP’
Still one of the most chased LeBrons to date, the ‘What the MVP’ was debuted against the Chicago Bulls.
une 20, 2013: Nike LeBron X P.S. Elite ‘Celebration’.
In a memorable NBA Finals matchup against the Spurs, LeBron and the Heat managed to outlast the Western champs in winning back-to-back NBA Championships.
October 29, 2013: Nike LeBron 11 ‘Ring Ceremony’ PE.
King James received his second NBA Championship ring before taking care of the Bulls.
February 5, 2014: Nike LeBron 11 ‘Fairfax’ PE.
In a game against the Clippers, LeBron paid tribute to LA prep powerhouse Fairfax by wearing their PEs.
November 7, 2014: Nike LeBron 12 ‘Veteran’s Day’ PE.
Part of Hoops for Troops Week, LeBron broke out these very patriotic PEs in a win over the Nuggets.
November 13, 2015: Nike LeBron 13 ‘Friday the 13th’.
LeBron continued to haunt the Knicks at MSG on what happened to be Friday the 13th.
June 19, 2016: Nike LeBron Soldier 10 ‘Championship’.
After the most epic Finals series in recent memory, LeBron took his Game 5 shoes back to Game 7 to close out the season-long favorite Warriors and finally brought a Championship to the city of Cleveland.
October 17, 2017: Nike LeBron 15 ‘Equality’ PE.
LeBron sent a strong message to the White House during this season’s opening night win against his old teammate Kyrie and the Celtics.
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