James is now the first player in NBA history to reach 40,000 career points. The Los Angeles Lakers All-Star team officially crossed the threshold on Saturday night, losing 124-114 to the Denver Nuggets at Crypto.com Arena.
James entered the game with 39,991 career points after scoring 31 against the Washington Wizards on Thursday. He scored his first basket on Saturday, a fastbreak layup midway through the first quarter and a three-pointer minutes later. James then opened the second quarter with a layup with a pair of Nuggets players.
Two possessions later, James made another layup after passing Michael Porter Jr. to reach 40,000 career points.
James reached the threshold just over a year after breaking the NBA's all-time scoring record. On February 8 of last season, James scored his 38,388th point, passing the previous champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Since then, he has consistently added to his total, putting the record beyond the reach of future rivals.
Asked Thursday night if he cared about 40,000 points, James said, "I mean, I can't sit here and say no, because of course. No one has ever done it," James said. "And for me, it's a pretty cool thing to be in this position and time in my career. Is it at the top of what I've done in my career? No. But does it mean something? Of course it does. Absolutely. Why not?"
James, 39, continues to be one of basketball's top scorers in his 21st NBA season. On Saturday, he entered this season ranked 15th with 25.3 points per game. After averaging 20.9 points per game as a rookie in 2003-04, James averaged at least 25 points in each of the next 20 NBA seasons.He became the league's leading scorer with 30 points per game in 2007-08 and surpassed the 30-point mark twice in his career.
