How many NBA career points does LeBron James have? Looking into 20x All-Star’s incredible scoring feat

A feat that seemed impossible only about a decade ago has been conquered. And who else but LeBron James. After James’ spin layup in the second quarter with 10:42 left against the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, he breached the 40,000-point mark in regular-season games.

Nobody is close — at least among active players — and it seems like a record that will stand the test of time.

LeBron James currently has 40,017 points in 1,475 regular-season games. Before the start of tonight’s game, the King needed just nine points to reach the 40k mark.

In the 1,474 games before the LA Lakers-Nuggets contest, James averaged 27.1 points per game. He also averaged 7.5 assists and 7.4 rebounds. In his current pace and if James plays for another three seasons at least, he can easily breach the 45,000-point mark as well.

In addition to the regular-season points, LeBron James also has 8,023 playoff points in 282 games. While it’s very unlikely for James to reach the 50,000 mark in regular-season games, he will most probably achieve the feat in terms of overall scoring numbers sometime next season.

When did LeBron James pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record?

LeBron James surpassed Kareem Adbul-Jabbar’s scoring record on Feb. 8, 2023, against the OKC Thunder. James needed 36 points before the start of the game to go past Kareem’s 38,387 points. The King didn’t even need the full game to get those 36 points. He sank a turnaround 21 footer with 10.9 seconds left in the third quarter in front of the LA Lakers crowd at Crypto.com Arena.

The game was halted for a few minutes as a congratulatory video was played and James was given the game ball.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver said:

“Congratulations to LeBron on breaking one of the most hallowed records in all of sports by becoming the NBA’s all-time scoring leader.”

Former Lakers legend Magic Johnson was a part of the congratulatory clip, as he said:

“I never thought anybody could beat Kareem’s record.”

James took time to soak in the moment and reflect on the accomplishment:

“To be in the presence of such a legend and great as Kareem, it means so much to me. It’s very humbling. To everybody who’s ever been a part of this run with me the last 20 years, I just want to say thank you so much.

"To the NBA … I thank you guys so much for letting me be part of something I’ve always dreamed about. I would never, ever in a million years dreamed it’s better than what it is tonight.”

Well, the NBA and its millions of fans can't thank you enough, LeBron James.