The GOAT? The basketball journey of Lebron James

Lebron James is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time. Let's look through his life from him from him up to this point.

James was born and raised in Akron, Ohio by his mother Gloria. His mother was just 16 at the time of his birth and struggled for steady work and a stable household.

After discovering basketball through an old football coach, James dominated his local AAU league and controversially decided to go to St Vincent St Mary High School which was predominantly white.

James was dominant from the moment he stepped foot on a high school court. As a freshman he averaged over 20 points a game, resulting in the school having to host games at college arenas.

Cable networks started broadcasting his games on a Pay Per View basis as his team played other nationally ranked teams. At 16, the superstar averaged 29 points, eight rebounds, and six assists.

With the highly anticipated 2002 NBA draft approaching, James tried to change the eligibility so he could enter, but because his team lost in the final state the NBA didn't change the rule.

After being touted by Slam magazine as the best high school player in the country, James did a live TV interview with famous sports broadcaster Bob Costas prior to the 2003 NBA draft.

With the sky-high ceiling the young superstar had created, Costas famously said on ESPN, "How does it feel to know if you're not a first-ballot Hall of Famer, you'll be seen as a failure?"

The 2003 NBA draft has been considered one of the greatest draft classes of all time, with the likes of future Hall of Famers Dwayne Wade, and Carmelo Anthony.

After such great anticipation, James was selected number one by his hometown team the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs won the number one pick after a record of 17-65 the previous year.

After joining the Cavs, the players he was about to join up with had mixed reviews on the young 18-year-old kid.

According to SBNation, Carlos Boozer, Cleveland center at the time said: "We have better players than him at his position already on our team though."

The king had taken his struggling Cavalier side to a .500 record in just his second season, averaging 27 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists, making him an All-NBA First-Team player at age 20.

James led Cleveland to 50 wins in back-to-back seasons in 2006 and 2007, making the playoffs both times in the process. After an early knockout in 2006, the Cavs made it all the way to the finals in 2007.

After a meteoric rise to stardom, James and his team had the chance to create history by being the first Cavs team to win a championship. However, they were swept by the San Antonio Spurs.

After two previous MVP-winning years in 2008 and 2009, James entered a free agency and nationally broadcast his choice of a team on live TV called 'the decision.'

With numerous teams interested in him, James famously said on 'The Decision' TV show, "This fall, I'm going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat."

James would be joined in Miami by all-star players Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade, in a star-studded team destined for glory.

In his time in Miami, the Heat would go to the finals four straight years from 2011-2014, winning two championships and James picking up the Finals MVP on both occasions.

After opting out of his contract with the Miami Heat, in the summer of 2014 James decided to join Cleveland again with the likes of Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, forming an all-star trio.

In his first year back with the Cavs, James helped guide the Cavs back to the NBA Finals, making it five straight finals visits for himself. They played the Golden State Warriors and lost by six.

The 2016 NBA Finals looked to have been won before the tip-off. The Cavs would face competition favorites the Golden State Warriors, who had just won the record for most regular season wins in history with 73. 

After going 3-1 down in the series, Cleveland was the first team to come back from such a deficit, winning the championship in Game 7, earning James his third ring and third Finals MVP.

After eight straight finals appearances, James opted out of his contract with Cleveland in 2018, joining the Los Angeles Lakers.

After failing to get into the off-season in his first season, the Lakers brought in new coach Frank Vogel and elite big man Anthony Davis for the 2019 season.

After an impressive start to the season, the year was suspended due to the outbreak of Covid-19 in March 2020, with the season resuming in the NBA bubble in July of that year.

Finishing the first seed in the west, the Lakers only lost three games on the way to the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. The Lakers won in six games with James averaging 30 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists on the way to his fourth Finals MVP award.

Since winning his fourth NBA championship, his Lakers side has struggled to be competitive in the league. Despite that, the whole world is waiting for him to break the all-time scoring record.

James is expected to break the record of 38,387 set by Kareem Abdul Jabbar when he plays the Oklahoma City Thunder on 7 February 2022.