One thing that one can never take away from Mike Nwabuzor (188-G-1996, college: NMHU) is that he will be forever be linked to Lebron James even if they never played against each other in a real professional game, but in a pro Am game in Los Angeles in July 2022. Nwabuzor is one of thousands of very talented guards on this planet that hasn’t reached a high level overseas yet, but continues to get closer as he will play in Germany for Pro A club Artland Dragons. He is another one of many that had to pay his dues in the JUCO and have that seemingly neverending climb up the basketball ladder as his trek is still far away from reaching the top. The 193cm guard has been living the overseas dream and even if it has been a struggle having played in Germany and North Macedonia, he has never given up to have to prove himself and demonstrate his nonending love for the game. It wasn’t any different last summer when he suddenly found himself going head to head against Lebron James in a summer time Pro Am game in Los Angeles under the watchful eyes of family, friends and legends like Draymond Greene and Baron Davis. At the end of 40 minutes his stat line read 17/8/7/3/3 which would of made many guys envious. ”I feel that I performed at a high level on the biggest stage and that speaks volumes about my preparation and the work I put into my craft. I played a full all around game , which is me in a nutshell. I’m a playmaker and defender that can score the basketball and get my teammates off as well. My one regret and probably biggest moment is coming down the line and taking off to dunk right in front of Bron and I missed the dunk by an inch. Ball went in the rim and popped out when I pulled the rim down. Other than that, great all around game. I was composed , confident , and strategic in my attack offensively and defensively’, expressed Mike Nwabuzor. There aren’t many guys on this planet that can say that they have played against Lebron James that never set foot in the NBA. Obviously for him being able to observe the king get the record is an extra special meaning for him. ‘It just validates the game we played even more. To be able to say to say I shared the court with the NBA’s all time leading scorer holds a lot of weight’, stated Mike Nwabuzor. It was definitely an experience he will never forget.

Now let’s fast forward 7 months later to Feb 2023. Lebron James became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer breaking the record of ex Los Angeles Lakers legend Kareem Abdul Jabbar that stood 38 years. He had one advantage over all those poor ballers overseas that were in time zones 9 hours and more away in that he didn’t have to be dead tired and be up in the middle of the night to witness history. Instead he was back in the States and could enjoy the game with a cool drink. He had been preparing religiously for the Basketball Africa League where he suited up for Seydou Legacy Athletique Club Conakry averaging 16.8ppg, 2.8rpg, 3.8apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 52.9%, 3PT: 34.8%, FT: 92.3%. When one sits down and tries to digest a long standing record like this, one really has to be able to comprehend what it really means for someone to have broken this record. ‘It’s hard to put into perspective. I don’t think we will really understand until LeBron retires. I also don’t see anybody breaking this record because of how much longer Bron will play’, stressed Mike Nwabuzor. It is truly a shame that the young generation can’t fully understand or appreciate the legacy that Kareem has had over time with his incredible skill set. ‘I have watched full games of games in the 80s and 90s courtesy of NBA TV so it allowed me to understand these older legacies and I think Kareem paved the way for many things in the basketball world’, expressed Mike Nwabuzor who’s favorite Lebron moment was his block against Andre Iguodala in the 2016 finals.

The big question coming into the Oklahoma Thunder game was, was he going to break it against Shai Gillgeous-Alexander or in the next game against the Milwaukee Bucks. It must have been clear to everyone when Lebron James came in all black that the record would fall that night. He didn’t disappoint any of the home crowd fans as he scored 38 points in 26 minutes. No one can really argue that it wasn’t a normal day at the office for the 4 time NBA champion. ‘Normal day for sure. Although I think they were kind of force feeding him the ball instead of playing the game. It still is something he would’ve accomplished either way’, said Mike Nwabuzor. Lebron James made his record breaking points with a routine step back jumper over Kenrich Williams. One has to wonder what would have been happening on social media had he set up on the base line and made a sky hook in Kareem manner. ‘Honestly I was hoping and expecting him to do a sky hook to honor or show up Kareem, however you want to look at it. The one foot fade is one of his patent moves so I’m not surprised. I think that social media would have its way with that narrative. So many different avenues people good go with that’, said Mike Nwabuzor. Also with the crafty and versatile Russell Westbrook on the court, one could of expected a fancy dime to forever be remembered and linked with the bucket. But instead it was no special pass. All ballers agree that his pass won’t be remembered in 20 years, but his triple doubles surely will. ‘I don’t think anything will trump the feat of triple doubles that Russ accomplished in those years. Those are seasons and times you could never forget’, warned Mike Nwabuzor. One thing that one can speculate about is how much the ball will be worth. Billions may be a bit unthinkable, but what about millions? ‘That ball will definitely be worth millions but it won’t be leaving Bron’s possession , I know that for a fact’, warned Mike Nwabuzor.

It took almost 40 years for the record to be broken. Will it take another 40 years or perhaps longer. Can this incredible record ever be broken? ‘I personally don’t think it can be broken because I don’t see another player playing as long Bron and at as high of a level’, added Mike Nwabuzor. The game has changed over the last years where there is so much more scoring, more possessions and more three pointers. One guy who could possibly compete for the record is Luka Doncic, but he will have to be durable and become a physical specimen like Lebron so he can play many many years. ‘Luka does have a good head start but I don’t see him playing more than 20 years in this league’, warned Mike Nwabuzor. The GOAT debate has been going on for more than a decade between Jordan and Lebron. Does Lebron’s record finally give him the GOAT status? ‘I give him the goat of our generation for sure. It’s hard to argue who is the best because I am a big fan of both’, commented Mike Nwabuzor. He may never face him again on the court, but just in case he would, he will be prepared on and off the court. ‘I would approach him the same way I approach anybody else. At the end of the day, he is still human. On the court, my wish would be that we worked out together and then played 1s after. As for off the court, I’d like to get a workout with him in the weight room and see what he’s doing to be able to keep on playing at this level in year 20’, stressed Mike Nwabuzor. One day he will be able to tell his grand children that he played against the NBA all-time leading scorer Lebron James and nobody will be able to take that away from him.

Tags : MIKE NWABUZOR, LOS ANGELES CHEATERS (DREW LEAGUE), GERMAN BASKETBALL