19 incredible stats to know about LeBron James before his 19th playoff run

When the Los Angeles Lakers open

the 2026 NBA Playoffs

against the Houston Rockets on Saturday (

8:30 p.m. ET, ABC

), LeBron James will begin his 19th postseason run. To celebrate that historic achievement, here are 19 stats you need to know about one of the greatest careers in sports history.

19th playoff appearance

James ties Karl Malone and John Stockton for the most playoff appearances in NBA history, while passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Tim Duncan, who had 18 apiece. His

19

playoff appearances are more than

six

NBA franchises have in

their entire histories

: Orlando (18), Memphis (14), Minnesota (14), Toronto (14), Charlotte (10) and New Orleans (nine).

All-time scoring leader

James leads all players in scoring in both

the regular season

(

43,440 points

) and

the playoffs

8,289 points

). He is the only player in NBA history

with 50,000 combined points

in the regular season and playoffs, currently at

51,729

(and counting).

In the playoffs, he’s scored in double figures a record

290

times, including a record

261

games with 20+ points, a record

123

games with 30+ points, as well as 29 games with 40+ points and one 50+ point game.

All-time leader in games played

Earlier this season, James became the NBA’s all-time leader in regular-season games played (now at

1,622

at season’s end). During that time, he’s

played against

36%

of all players

in NBA history. He also leads all players in playoff games (

292

) and can reach the 300-game benchmark with a first-round series win.

All-time leader in field goals made

No player in NBA history has made more buckets than James in

15,961

) or in

8,229

). Of those playoff buckets,

480

have come from beyond the arc, as James ranks third behind Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson for the

most 3-pointers made

in playoff history.

All-time leader in minutes played

James leads all players in minutes played in both

61,029

playoffs

12,062

). That is the equivalent of

42.38

days in the regular season and

8.38

days in the playoffs.

Top 5 all-time in assists

James is one of only four players

in NBA history

to rack up over 12,000 assists, with his

12,016

dimes trailing only Stockton, Jason Kidd and Chris Paul.

In the playoffs

, James’

2,095

assists rank second only to Magic Johnson.

Top 5 all-time in triple-doubles

All-around play has always been at the core of James’ game, as evidenced by his

125

regular-season triple-doubles (fifth all-time) and his

28

playoff triple-doubles (second all-time, just two behind Johnson).

James also has the most such games in NBA history:

20+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists (

971

games)

25+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists (

729

30+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists (

426

LeBron vs. everybody

James is the only player in NBA history to post

40 points or more in a game against all 30 teams

. He is also one of only three players (along with Russell Westbrook and Luka Dončić) to post triple-doubles against all 30 NBA franchises.

An MVP Race fixture

With

four

Kia MVPs, LeBron is tied with Wilt Chamberlain for the third-most in NBA history behind Abdul-Jabbar (six), Michael Jordan, and Bill Russell (five each). James has finished in the top five in MVP voting

14

times, including

13

consecutive years from 2006-18.

In addition to his four MVP wins, LeBron has four second-place finishes, tied with Larry Bird and Jerry West for the most runner-ups. James has top-two finishes in MVP voting across three different decades:

2000s:

Second in 2005-06; first in 2008-09

2010s:

First in 2009-10, 2011-12 & 2012-13; second in 2013-14 & 2017-18

2020s:

Second in 2019-20

Most combined wins

No player has more wins across the regular season (

1,048

, second to Abdul-Jabbar) and the playoffs (an NBA record

184

) than James’

1,232

combined. James has more playoff wins than

21

active NBA franchises.

The only nine with more:

Los Angeles Lakers (466)

Boston Celtics (429)

Philadelphia 76ers (250)

San Antonio Spurs (222)

Golden State Warriors (217)

New York Knicks (210)

Detroit Pistons (190)

Chicago Bulls (187)

Oklahoma City Thunder (186)

Most Playoff series wins

Over his first 18 playoff appearances, James racked up an NBA record

41

playoff series wins. He has a

15-3

record in the first round,

12-3

in the conference semifinals,

10-2

in the conference finals and

4-6

in the NBA Finals. James’ 41 series wins are more than

24

active franchises.

The only six with more:

Los Angeles Lakers (112)

Boston Celtics (94)

Golden State Warriors (48)

Philadelphia 76ers (48)

San Antonio Spurs (45)

New York Knicks (45)

Only one to win Finals MVP with 3 different teams

James has been named Finals MVP during each of his

championship runs, giving him the second-most Finals MVPs in league history behind Jordan’s six. James is the only player to win the award while playing for

three

different teams: the Miami Heat (2012, 2013), the Cleveland Cavaliers (2016) and the Los Angeles Lakers (2020).

An NBA Finals staple

James has participated in

12.7%

of all NBA Finals ever played (10 of 79).

His

10

Finals appearances

are tied with Abdul-Jabbar for the third most all-time, behind Russell (12) and Sam Jones (11). James’ run of eight straight Finals appearances (2011-2018) is only matched by the Russell-era Celtics teams of the 1950s and 1960s.

Only member of the 10K-10K-10K club

James is the only player in NBA history to tally at least 10K points, 10K rebounds, and 10K assists over the course of a career. No other player possesses the 10K-rebound and 10K-assist combo — Westbrook is the closest, but only reaches 9,000 rebounds.

James ends the 2025-26 season with career totals of

43,440

points,

12,095

rebounds, and

assists.

Averaging 20+ points in record 23rd season

Not only is James the first player to play

23

NBA seasons, but he’s also averaged at least

20

points in every one of those seasons, including a record 20-season run averaging

25+

points (2004-05 through 2023-24).

Adding in his points and rebounds, James has averaged at least 20 points, five rebounds and five assists for

straight seasons. No other player has a streak longer than

seasons.

The double-digit scoring streak

James scored at least 10 points in

1,297

games from Jan. 6, 2007 to Dec. 1, 2025. His streak was longer than every NBA career

except for

these

25

players

.

When the streak was

broken on Dec. 4, 2025

, James had eight points with the ball in his hands in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter in a tie game against the Raptors. Rather than looking to keep his scoring streak intact, James dished the game-winning assist to Rui Hachimura, who buried a corner 3-pointer at the buzzer.

Most All-Star selections

Earlier this season, James earned his

22nd

consecutive All-Star selection. That extended his record for the most selections ever, which began in his second NBA season (2004-05).

In addition to being the NBA’s all-time scoring leader in the regular season and playoffs, James also has the most points in NBA All-Star history with

449

Most All-NBA selections

With a record

selections, James has earned All-NBA honors in more seasons than the entire careers of every NBA player in history, outside of these seven:

LeBron James (23 seasons)

Vince Carter (22)

Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, Robert Parish, Chris Paul, and Kevin Willis (21 each)

All-NBA First Team selections, James has two more than any player in league history, topping Kobe Bryant and Malone with

11

apiece.

Scoring as a youngster … and as a veteran

James is the only player in NBA history to score

40+

points as both a teenager and a 40-year-old.

Teenager (3x):

41 points vs. Nets on March 27, 2004 (19 years, 88 days old), 43 points vs. Pistons on Nov. 24, 2004 (19y, 330d), 40 points at Hawks on Dec. 28, 2004 (19y, 364d)

40+ year-old (2x):

40 points at Blazers on Feb. 20, 2025 (40y, 52d), 42 points vs. Warriors on Feb. 6, 2025 (40y, 38d)

James is the only player in NBA history with multiple 40+ point games in his 40s. His three 40+ point games as a teenager are second all-time behind rookie Cooper Flagg (four).