On Tuesday, LeBron James added another chapter to NBA history by becoming the inaugural player to surpass the 39,000-point mark as the Los Angeles Lakers dominated the Utah Jazz, securing their place in the league’s newly introduced in-season tournament knockout stage.
At 38 years old, James entered the game requiring merely five points to achieve this milestone. He solidified his legacy by sinking a three-pointer during the first quarter of the Lakers’ commanding 131-99 victory.
Having surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar last season to claim the title of the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, James acknowledged the crowd’s support as his latest accomplishment was announced.
“I haven’t really had an opportunity to wrap my head around what it means,” James said of his latest scoring milestone.
“There’s been so many great players in this league since the beginning of time, and so many great scorers.
“To be able to be the first of anything is always pretty cool. A wild moment, for sure.”
James’ landmark set the mood for a celebratory occasion at the Crypto.com Arena as the Lakers went on to score a wire-to-wire win and reach the in-season tournament’s quarter-finals.
James finished with 17 points from 6-of-10 shooting, while Anthony Davis led the Lakers scorers with 26 points, 16 rebounds and four assists.
Elsewhere, Kevin Durant also passed a scoring milestone, moving up to 11th place on the NBA’s career scoring list in Phoenix’s 120-107 drubbing of the Portland Trail Blazers.
Durant needed 14 points to overtake Elvin Hayes on the scoring charts, and duly knocked them down in a free-scoring first quarter. Durant finished with 31 points to lead the Phoenix scoring, taking his career tally to 27,331 points.
(AFP)
