LeBron James scoring tracker: How close is he to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record?

Since his early days in basketball, LeBron James has considered himself more of a passer than a scorer. But he has always been dynamic at the rim, and later in his NBA career developed his touch of even more dangerous shooting offensively.

In two decades of perfecting exactly how to attack an NBA defense, James has reached a historic culmination once thought almost impossible to reach.

Los Angeles Lakers star James is 158 points behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s 38,387 career points. Abdul-Jabbar has been his leader in scoring in his NBA career since April 5, 1984, more than eight months before James was born. Abdul-Jabbar played five more seasons with the Lakers after Wilt passed Chamberlain to win that title.

As James neared the record, he increased his scoring from 28.5 points per game in the first three months of the season to about 35 points in January. This season and his 2021-22 season are his two highest-scoring seasons of his career. As difficult as it may be, he could break the record Tuesday against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, one of his favorite arenas. Four games later, the Lakers will host the Milwaukee Bucks in a game between the two NBA teams played by Abdul-Jabbar.

lakers schedule

• Saturday @ Boston Celtics

• Monday @ Nets

• Tuesday @ Knicks

• February 2 @ Indiana Pacers

• Feb. 4 @ New Orleans Pelicans

• February 7 vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

• Feb. 9 vs. Milwaukee Bucks

Here are some of James’ notable performances this season.

Jan. 24 vs. Los Angeles Clippers: 46 points

The Clippers took a big lead early on, and from then on, the only aspect of the game that seemed to work for the Lakers was James’ long-range shooting. James made a career-high nine 3-pointers in 14 attempts.

James finished the night with 46 points, the first time he scored at least 40 points against the Clippers. He is currently the first player to score 40 or more points in a game against all 30 teams in the NBA.

Despite James’ good night, the Lakers lost 133-115, leaving James on the bench at the end of the game depressed.

The Lakers were on a three-game losing streak, losing narrowly to the Dallas Mavericks and the Philadelphia 76ers. James has produced some impressive performances in losses this season, but he enjoys it more when his team wins. The game was his highest scoring of the season and came on his second night in a row.

He was also reminded of his age when Houston rookie Jabari Smith Jr. told him during the game that his father played against him in James’ first NBA game in 2003. At 38, James is one of the oldest players in the league.

“I could easily rest tonight, but the momentum of the ballclub didn’t let me rest tonight,” James said after the game. No. I wanted to remove it from my taste buds.

Dec. 2 vs. Milwaukee Bucks: 28 points

It wasn’t one of James’ highest-scoring games, but it showed what the Lakers can do when they go all out. Anthony Davis was healthy and scored 44 points as the Lakers defeated him, one of his conference’s best teams, in a road trip.

James’ 11 assists surpassed Magic Johnson for the sixth-most all-time assists in NBA history. It was also his 900th career win.