When he moved up to second on the NBA's career points list, James set his sights on the NBA's all-time leading scorer. The 2022-23 season will be James' 20th in the NBA and he needs 1,326 points to surpass Abdul-Jabbar's career total. James has scored at least 1,500 points in 18 of his previous 19 seasons, so it is likely that he will break Abdul-Jabbar's 38 year run as the NBA's most prolific scorer. When James was eight months old, Abdul-Jabbar broke the record for the most career points by a single player. We will have ongoing coverage of James' quest, with updated game-by-game projections and complete statistics.
James is now in his 20th season, the same number Abdul-Jabbar played in his legendary career. And while the legendary Lakers big man posted bigger scoring numbers early in his career, James' lengthy prime (15 consecutive seasons averaging at least 25 PPG) has allowed him to close the gap. YEAR-BY-YEAR POINT TOTALS 
“If LeBron breaks the record, and it looks like he has every reason to break it, I’ll be very happy for him. The game will always improve when records like that are broken.”
James' 2021-22 season came to an early end after a 38-point performance in a loss to the Pelicans. With the Lakers already eliminated from play-in contention and James nursing an injured ankle, the team shut him down with five games to go. He scored at least 36 points in each of the last five games he played.
“To know that I’m on the verge of breaking probably the most sought-after record in the NBA, things that people say would probably never be done, I think it’s just super humbling for myself. I think it’s super cool.”
James opens the season against the Golden State Warriors, the team he famously faced four times in the NBA Finals. When these two teams last met in March, James scored a season-high 56 points on 19-of-31 shooting to lead the Lakers to a win. 
OCT. 18, 10 P.M. ET: LAKERS AT WARRIORS
All Rights Reserved © 2024
