LeBron James, who was anointed, The Chosen One on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a 17-year-old high school junior, fulfilled that prophecy by breaking the NBA scoring record with his 38,388th point during season 20 of his illustrious career.
The Los Angeles Lakers’ forward scored the record-breaking basket in front of a home crowd Tuesday night local time against the Oklahoma City Thunder, overtaking a milestone that stood for nearly 39 years and was held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks center.
James broke the record with a fadeaway with 10.9 seconds left in the third quarter. The crowd erupted, and James shared a hug with his mother. The game paused in celebration.
A presentation was played on the video screens above, showing moments of his remarkable career, and Abdul-Jabbar handed James a basketball on the court and shook his hand. James wiped his eyes, and thanked his family, the fans and the NBA.
I would never ever in a million years dreamt this even better than what it is tonight, James said.
James began the game needing 36 points to capture the record considered unbreakable by some pundits. The record includes scoring only during regular-season games. Playoff games are in their own category.
Abdul-Jabbar, who was at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Tuesday, surpassed NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain as the top scorer on April 5, 1984 more than eight months before James was born.
Abdul-Jabbar scored 38,387 points in a two-decade NBA career before he retired in 1989.
James, 38, widely considered a pass-first player, moved up to No. 4 in all-time NBA assists late last month when he eclipsed Steve Nash with his 10,336th assist.
James, a native of Akron, Ohio, who was selected out of high school as the NBA’s No. 1 pick in 2003 by the Cleveland Cavaliers, has trekked toward the scoring record during his two-decade career by averaging about 27 points per game.