James told Cleveland media that he feels he has proved everything in his career.
Does LeBron James have anything left to prove? After his 10th straight playoff win on Friday, he doesn’t think so.
“Seriously, what else would I have (to prove),” James told Cleveland.com. “I've won championships, I won my first one and I've won for my teammates, I came home and won. There isn't anything I have left to prove.”
James was his usual destructive self in Game 3, with 35 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists as the Cavaliers moved to 7-0 in these playoffs. In those seven games, James is averaging 34 points, 9.0 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 2.4 steals and 1.6 blocks on 57 percent shooting. Go back to last year’s NBA Finals, of course, and he led a comeback down 3-1 that included back-to-back 41 point games and a Game 7 triple-double.
Clearly, James isn’t someone who is checked out from the sport. But he doesn’t feel like he needs to prove himself to anyone anymore.
“If you're not in a place where you can win, where you might not have the opportunity, then that might not be what it's about for you,” James said. “For me, I've always won. Ever since I started playing this game, my first year in youth (basketball), we went 6-0 and won the championship. And then we won it again.”
Money isn’t a concern for James, and he said it never really was beyond a certain point. James has made $172 million in his career and has a net worth of $275 million, per Forbes.
“The only thing I worried about when it comes to money was not to go broke,” he said. “It wasn't about how much do I need to earn; it was keeping what I have, saving what I have. Where I came from, I'm not going back there.”
The one thing that James obviously could still accomplish in his career is passing Michael Jordan and claiming the “best basketball player ever” title. It’s an arbitrary title, one that James will never be given by some because he’s unlikely to reach six championships. But at this point, that’s really the only accomplishment he has left to give. If Cleveland reaches the NBA Finals again this season, it will be James’ seventh straight finals appearance.
James has publicly acknowledged he is chasing Jordan now, and he isn’t willing to compare himself to Jordan just yet. But at the same time, he wants us to remember that he has done everything else that has ever been put in front of him.
“I know what you're saying, but I'm not free, because my passion for this game is so huge, it's enormous, and my desire to be great is ridiculous,” James said. “My desire to be great, to be great at this game I love so much, that trumps everything else.”