LeBron James Breaks NBA All-Time Scoring Record

LeBron James is officially the NBA's all-time leading scorer. On Tuesday night, the Los Angeles Lakers star scored 36 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder to post a career 38,388 points. James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar who has 38,387 points. Karl Malone is third on the list with 36,928. Kobe Bryant is fourth with 33,643 and Michael Jordan is fifth with 32,292. 

Before James broke the record, the four-time NBA spoke to ESPN about making history. "It's still mind-boggling to myself … I've never said I wanted to lead the league in scoring or, for sure, never said I wanted to be the all-time leader in scoring," James said, per Yahoo Sports. "That's never been a dream of mine, and to sit here and actually be on the brink of it happening, it's pretty crazy."

James, 38, is already one of the best players in NBA history. Last year, The Athletic ranked the NBA's all-time 75 best players, and James came in at No. 2 behind Michael Jordan. The James fanfare began before he came into the NBA as he was the top high school player in the country. In 2003, James was selected No. 1 overall By the Cleveland Cavaliers and became an instant superstar. He has won four NBA Championships with three different teams, was named NBA Finals MVP four times, named NBA MVP four times and was selected to play in the All-Star game 19 times. 

What James just did was break a record that stood for 34 years. "That's a record that seemed like nobody was ever going to catch him, and the only one who probably is going to catch him if he decides to play another two years or three years will be LeBron," said Heat president Pat Riley, who coached Abdul-Jabbar on the Lakers and brought James to Miami, per The Athletic. 

Now the question is what's next for James since he's accomplished everything in the NBA. When speaking to reporters in December, James hinted at retiring soon. "I don't have a number," James said when asked how long he intended to remain in the NBA, per the Orange County Register. "I know as long as my mind stay in it, I can play at this level for a minute... I will make sure my body is taken care of and I'll continue to put in the work."

"I think about how much longer I'm going to play the game... I don't want to finish my career playing at this level from a team aspect. I'll still be able to be [competing] for championships because I know what I can still bring to any ball club with the right pieces."

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