Welcome Back: Catching football fans up on the NBA season

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LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers and Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks. Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images /

With apologies to every other sport, football is the most popular sport in the United States. Through a combination of tradition, scarcity, visual marvel, and a sprinkling of guilt, football has captured the attention of millions of Americans. During football season, many Americans with lives busy with family, work, and other responsibilities don’t have the bandwidth to follow another sport.

So now that the college football season is over and the NFL has just one game left, those of us who follow the NBA year-round can welcome back our friends and families to follow the league. What do you need to know to get caught up on the NBA season?

Here are the Top 5 things you need to know about the 2022-23 NBA season.

5. LeBron James is about to break the all-time scoring record

Whatever your opinion of LeBron James is, it’s nearly impossible to deny that he is having the greatest season ever for a player of his age. Just three other players have ever averaged 20 points per game at age 38: Karl Malone (22.4), Michael Jordan (22.9), and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (23.4).

LeBron is averaging 30.0.

That incredible production and his general health this season have him nearing the precipice of one of the greatest records in sports. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the all-time NBA points leader, scoring 38,387 points in his career. LeBron James is now just 35 points behind him, on track to break the record sometime in the next week. Currently, the target date is February 9th, when the Lakers will host the Milwaukee Bucks – the Bucks being the team Kareem first played for, a nice full-circle historic possibility.