The accolades continue to pile up for Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James.
Along with winning the fourth championship of his career this year, his first with L.A., James became just the fourth NBA player ever to win a championship with three different teams. On that list with him are his teammate Danny Green, as well as Robert Horry and John Salley.
As if that wasn’t enough, James also became the first player in NBA history to win Finals MVP with three different teams, an absolutely insane accomplishment and one that many will use in his favor when discussing the ever-contentious GOAT debate between he and Michael Jordan.
Of course, one could argue that the reason James won Finals MVP with three different teams is due to the fact that he jumped from franchise to franchise throughout his prime in an effort to join teams that gave him the best chance to be in championship contention every year, but that’s neither here nor there.
James averaged 29.8 ppg, 11.8 rpg, 8.5 apg, 59.1 FG% and 41.7 3P% in the 2020 NBA Finals, and was spectacular throughout, controlling games from start to finish and putting the pesky Miami Heat away before they could make the series competitive.
James is one of just three players ever to win Finals MVP with more than one franchise, along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who did it with the Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks, and Kawhi Leonard, who did it with the San Antonio Spurs and Toronto Raptors.
However, no one else has been able to do it with three different teams, and unless Leonard can do it with the Clippers in the upcoming years, it’ll be a long time before anyone can match that record.
James is truly in a league of his own when it comes to historic accolades.