LeBron James Breaks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s All-Time NBA Field Goals Record, But Lakers Fall To Nuggets
LeBron James etched his name into the record books once again on Thursday (March 5), surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the all-time leader in field goals made in NBA history yet the milestone wasn’t enough to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past the Denver Nuggets, who won 120-113.
James, who already holds the record for the most points ever scored in the NBA, broke Abdul-Jabbar’s mark of 15,837 career field goals with a fadeaway jumper in the first quarter. The 41-year-old, now in his 23rd NBA season, brings his career field goal tally to 15,838.
He finished the night with 16 points, though his performance was overshadowed by a concerning moment in the fourth quarter when he was pushed off the court and fell onto a cameraman’s legs, appearing to injure his left elbow. Play was briefly stopped as James was substituted out, though he returned for the game’s final two minutes visibly in pain.
Despite cutting the deficit to just one point with two minutes left, the Lakers couldn’t complete the comeback. Nikola Jokic delivered another dominant triple-double for Denver 28 points, 13 assists, and 12 rebounds and summed up the victory simply: “They’re a difficult team to beat. We scored when we needed.”
The result carries significant playoff implications. The Lakers currently occupy sixth place the last automatic playoff berth in the Western Conference sitting just behind the Nuggets and two games ahead of the Phoenix Suns, who fell 105-103 to the Chicago Bulls on the same night.
James’s overall scoring record, now well over 43,000 career points, stands nearly 5,000 ahead of second-placed Abdul-Jabbar, whom he surpassed back in 2023. While analysts have noted that James reached the points record partly because Abdul-Jabbar played the bulk of his career before the NBA introduced the three-pointer, the field goals record speaks more directly to James’s extraordinary longevity and consistency as a scorer.
(With inputs from agencies)