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Former Oregon high school basketball star becomes EuroLeague's all-time leading scorer

Mike James, who led Grant to a 2008 Oregon high school state title, surpasses Vassilis Spanoulis
Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports|
Former Oregon high school basketball star becomes EuroLeague's all-time leading scorer
Former Oregon high school basketball star becomes EuroLeague's all-time leading scorer

A former Oregon high school basketball standout has etched his name atop one of the world's most prestigious professional basketball leagues. 

Mike James, a Grant High School (Oregon) alum and Portland basketball legend, passed Greek legend Vassillis Spanoulis as the EuroLeague's top scorer of all-time. 

Playing for AS Monaco, he hit a step-back jumper in the second quarter of a win over Serbian club Cvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade on Thursday. 

Play was stopped after the shot, which drew a rousing ovation from the crowd to commemorate the achievement. James, who is regarded as a EuroLeague MVP candidate this season, finished with 20 points in the 98-90 win to push his career total to 4,457.

Watch the sequence for yourself:

Perhaps more impressive, James, who is 33, notched the feat in 85 fewer games than Spanoulis, who retired in 2021 after a storied career (4,455 points) in Greece.

In high school, James helped lead Grant to the Class 6A OSAA state championship in 2008 alongside standout forward Mike Moser, who went on to play at UCLA, UNLV and Oregon. 

As an undersized guard at 6-feet tall, James was overlooked by big colleges, but he made a name for himself playing two seasons at Eastern Arizona and two more at Lamar. 

He went undrafted in 2012 but played well enough professionally overseas to make his way back to the NBA. He played five seasons overseas before his first of three stints with Phoenix in 2017. He also had stints with New Orleans (2018) and Brooklyn (2021).

Outside of the United States, he's pretty much won wherever he's gone. James has won championships in the top league in France, Italy, Greece (twice) and Russia.

—

Follow live for in-depth 2024 Oregon (OSAA) basketball state tournament coverage:

Oregon (OSAA) 6A, 5A boys basketball state tournaments: Wednesday's stars, highlights, statistical leaders

-- Andy Buhler | andy@scorebooklive.com | @sblivetx

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Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports
ANDY BUHLER, SBLIVE SPORTS

Andy Buhler is a Regional Editor of Texas and the national breaking news desk. He brings more than five years of experience covering high school sports across the state of Washington and beyond, where he covered the likes of Paolo Banchero and Tari Eason served on state tournament seeding committees. He works on the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national boys basketball rankings. He has covered everything from the Final Four, MLS in Atlanta to local velodrome before diving into the world of preps. His bylines can be found in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), The Associated Press, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington), The Oregonian and more. He holds a degree from Gonzaga and is based out of Portland, Oregon.

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