James becomes second all-time leading NBA scorer
LeBron James passes Karl Malone to become the NBA’s second all-time leading scorer, despite the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss to the…
LeBron James passed Karl Malone to become the NBA’s second all-time leading scorer, despite the Los Angeles Lakers’ loss to the Washington Wizards.
James scored 38 points in the 127-119 defeat, taking his career total to 36,947 points.
Only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has scored more points than the 37-year-old.
“At some point I’ll be able to look back at this moment, but right now the feeling I have, I can’t separate it [from the loss],” James said.
The Lakers have not won back-to-back matches since they claimed four in a row between 31 December and 7 January.
James scored six points in the first quarter before a dunk and three three-pointers brought him level on points with Malone.
A lay-up later on in the second quarter than took him beyond Malone’s record.
It was not enough, however, to stop the Wizards overturning a 16-point deficit to end a six-match losing streak.
When asked if he could break Abdul-Jabbar’s record, James said: “I will not allow myself to think about it.
“I’ve always just played the game the way I’ve been playing it over the years, and these things have just happened organically by just going out and playing the game the right way.
“I hope to accomplish that at some point in my career, but I won’t think about it too much.”
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 38,387 |
| LeBron James* | 36,947 |
| Karl Malone | 36,928 |
| Kobe Bryant | 33,643 |
| Michael Jordan | 32,292 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 31,560 |
| Wilt Chamberlain | 31,419 |
| Shaquille O’Neal | 28,596 |
| Carmelo Anthony* | 28,218 |
| Moses Malone | 27,409 |
| *Denotes active player |
Elsewhere, the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Milwaukee Bucks 138-119 and the Cleveland Cavaliers came past the Detroit Pistons 113-109.
There was also a 129-108 victory for the Charlotte Hornets over the Dallas Mavericks.
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