On January 3rd, Beijing time, the Lakers defeated the Trail Blazers 114:106 at home without Anthony Davis, securing their 19th victory of the season and maintaining sixth place in the Western Conference with a record of 19 wins and 14 losses. The 40-year-old LeBron James scored 38 points and had 8 assists.
In this game, LeBron James played for 36 minutes and 12 seconds, shooting 15 out of 25 from the field and 7 out of 10 from three-point range, scoring 38 points, grabbing 3 rebounds, and dishing out 8 assists, with the only downside being four turnovers. It's hard to imagine a 40-year-old player having such dominance in the NBA before James.
This season marks LeBron James' 21st NBA season, during which he is averaging 20.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, 8.9 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game, playing an average of 35 minutes per game, ranking 24th in the league.
After watching this game, many fans, like the author, couldn't help but wonder where LeBron James currently ranks among NBA players in terms of individual ability.
Currently, James ranks 18th in the league in scoring average. Behind him, the only players who could potentially challenge his ranking are Curry at 24th and Harden at 27th, but their performance this season has been far inferior to James'.
Among the players scoring more than James, I personally feel that there are only a few whose current individual abilities surpass James': Giannis Antetokounmpo, SGA, Jokic, Tatum, and Doncic. Players like Davis, Edwards, Irving, Brunson, Towns, and Durant are roughly on par with James. In other words, considering James' individual abilities, he is still among the top ten in the current NBA.