The Lakers ended up losing the game 133-130, a loss that keeps them away from the playoffs, but nothing overshadowed James’ great night, who finished with 38 points and raised the record of his two-decade career to 38,390. points, above the 38,387 accumulated by the legendary Abdul-Jabbar.
Abdul-Jabbar himself, LeBron’s family and a collection of celebrities came to celebrate the Lakers star, who at 38 continues to add to an extraordinary record that places him in the debate of the best players in history.
After the record, which has captured the attention of the NBA in recent weeks, the game was stopped for about 20 minutes to honor James’ feat.
This is “a record that has stood for almost 40 years and that a lot of people thought would never be broken,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said.
A James moved to tears thanked Abdul-Jabbar, with whom he melted into an emotional hug, his family and all the Lakers fans.
“To everyone who has been a part of this race with me these last 20 years, I just want to say thank you because it wouldn’t be me without all your help, all your passion and all your sacrifices to help me get here,” he said. “Never in a million years would I have dreamed of anything better than tonight.”
At the ceremony, messages followed one another on the giant screens, from the congratulations of US President Joe Biden to the greeting of students from the school that James founded in Akron, his hometown.
“You raised the game. More than that, like Kareem and Bill Russell and others who came before you, you challenged and inspired the nation to be better and to do better and to live up to all our promises. Keep it up,” he encouraged. Biden.