eBusiness Weekly
The Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James becomes the NBA’s all-time points record holder after scoring 38 against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night; Abdul-Jabbar courtside to see his record surpassed; James needed 36 points to overhaul record.
LeBron James has become the NBA’s all-time points record holder, after surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s total of 38,387, 20 seasons on from his debut.
James scored 20 points in the first half with a full showcase of the offensive talent that still shines blindingly after two decades in the NBA, and he tore through the record in a 16-point third quarter capped by a pretty jumper with 10,9 seconds left in the third quarter.
He pushed his career total to 38,388 points and broke the record that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar held for nearly four decades.
The game was stopped for around 10 minutes as members of James’ family, including his mother, his wife, and their three children, took the floor for a ceremony recognising the moment.
The 38-year-old had been nursing a sore ankle in the run-up to the game, an injury that he manages day-to-day, which makes the feat all the more impressive.
True to his word, James played through the pain and pulled off a historic feat at the Crypto.com Arena.
Surrounded by cameras, James addressed the crowd in the late third quarter as he surpassed the record, emotionally stating: “I thank you guys so much for allowing me to be a part of something I’ve always dreamed about”.
James then greeted Kareem who had been watching from the courtside. The pair had verbally sparred in the past on issues not related to sport, but they seemed to put their differences aside as Kareem presented LeBron with the basketball, as a sign of passing on the torch and thus extending his legacy:
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued the following statement regarding James passing Abdul-Jabbar’s to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer: “congratulations to LeBron on breaking one of the most hallowed records in all of the sport . . . it’s a towering achievement that speaks to his sustained excellence over 20 seasons in the league”.
Head Coach Darvin Ham echoed the sentiment when he stated that “the expectations were all the way out to Pluto, and he went ahead and created his own galaxy”.
James was quick to return the kind words in his post-match press conference: “To the NBA, to Adam Silver, to the late, great David Stern, I thank you guys so much for allowing me to be a part of something I’ve always dreamed about”.
He went on to say, “Man, everybody that’s been a part of this run with me these last 20+ years. I just want to say thank you so much because I wouldn’t be me without you all”.
Despite the game continuing into the fourth quarter, the reaction continued to pour in at the Crypto.com Arena, where dozens of celebrities gathered to witness history: Denzel Washington, Jay-Z, Bad Bunny, LL Cool J, Usher, Andy Garcia, and countless others.
Dozens of basketball greats also turned out, including Lakers heroes James Worthy and Bob McAdoo along with Dwayne Wade.
The loss itself might have marred an otherwise magical moment, but the Lakers know that they have limited time with LeBron and whether they bring in some additional support ahead of this Thursday’s trade deadline or not, he has given his all — and then some — to this franchise. — skysports
