Breaking a historic record! LeBron James career points.
The NBA‘s all-time leading scorer has a new name, and it’s LeBron James. During Tuesday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Los Angeles Lakers forward surpassed the previous record held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, finishing the night with 38,388 career points. Abdul-Jabbar, who set the record in 1984 and retired with 38,387 points, was in attendance at the game. James, who shows no signs of slowing down, could potentially reach 40,000 points in his career.
On Saturday, James scored 27 points against New Orleans, bringing him 36 points away from breaking a record. Despite playing for 40 minutes, James expressed exhaustion to reporters in the locker room.
Abdul-Jabbar was present at the game to witness James potentially surpass his long-standing record, which has remained untouched since his retirement in 1989.
Abdul-Jabbar set the record in 1984 after surpassing Chamberlain, who had only held the record for 11 years. Karl Malone, who stands in third place, retired almost 1,500 points behind Abdul-Jabbar after playing for 19 seasons.
Kobe Bryant holds the fourth spot, trailing James by almost 5,000 points. The top 5 players on the list, with the exception of Michael Jordan, have all played for the Los Angeles Lakers at some point in their careers.
James joined the NBA in 2003 as a highly anticipated rookie, having already achieved great success in high school. He was the top overall draft pick and immediately became a top scorer, averaging 20.9 points per game in his first season.
Although he only led the league in scoring once, with an average of 30 points per game in the 2007-2008 season, he has averaged at least 27 points per game 12 times, including the current season. His highest single-season scoring total was 31.4 points per game in his third season.
Over the course of his career, James has played for three different teams and scored over 23,000 points for Cleveland, over 7,900 points for Miami, and just over 7,300 points for Los Angeles. He has made the playoffs in 15 of his 19 seasons and already holds the record for most points in NBA history when regular season and playoff points are combined.
Despite his reputation as a facilitator and scorer, James has also recorded the fifth-highest number of regular season and postseason assists in NBA history. He has stated that the scoring record was not something he ever thought about as he has always been a pass-first player who enjoys seeing his teammates succeed. He has also expressed uncertainty about how he will feel when he breaks the record.
Carmelo Anthony, who joined the NBA in the same season as James, is currently the second highest-scoring active player. However, he is trailing behind James by a significant margin of 10,000 points. Despite remaining unsigned this season, Anthony has not yet retired and is six months older than James.
Kevin Durant, who has amassed over 26,684 points, is currently the third highest-scoring active player, but he lags behind James by approximately 12,000 points. Over the past eight seasons, Durant has scored just shy of 12,000 points. Durant is currently 34 years old.
James, who has a contract with the Los Angeles Lakers for two more seasons, has expressed a desire to play with his son Bronny, who is currently a high school senior and is considering college options for the fall. Playing with his son is the last item on James’ list of goals.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who played until he was 41, won three NCAA titles and three national player of the year honors during his four seasons at the University of California, Los Angeles, whereas James went straight to the pros. Abdul-Jabbar expressed his happiness for James breaking his record, stating that the game improves when records are broken, and James deserves to enjoy his achievement. Abdul-Jabbar also said that James has worked hard to get where he is, and that he will wait and see who will be lucky enough to break James’ record in the future.
>> Read more: Who is LeBron James? | A Brief Bio, Early Life, NBA Journey, and Network
