Lebron James moves into FOURTH ALL-TIME in assists with triple-double vs. Knicks, as he draws closer to breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record
LeBron James has climbed into fourth place on the NBA’s assists list as he closes in on becoming the league’s career scoring leader.
James passed both Mark Jackson (10,334) and Steve Nash (10,335) in the fourth quarter of the Lakers’ game against the New York Knicks on Tuesday. His 10,336th assist came on Thomas Bryant’s dunk with a little more than nine-and-a-half minutes remaining.
He finished with 11 on the night, in addition to 28 points and 10 rebounds as the Lakers won 129-123 in overtime.
LeBron James made progress in two records categories vs. the Knicks on Tuesday
James came into the game 117 points from passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the NBA’s career scoring record. He is now 89 from that after his 11-25 shooting night, while he’s now 908 assists behind third place (Chris Paul) in that category.
The Lakers raced out to a 10-point first quarter lead before the Knicks used a 10-2 run to get back in the game and eventually take the lead in the second quarter, going into halftime with a one-point lead after an outrageous (and successful) Dennis Schroeder three-point heave.
From there it was a close one, with the Knicks eventually erasing a four-point deficit with less than a minute remaining to force overtime.
James finished with 11 assists on the night as the Lakers won in overtime, 129-123
James now trails only Chris Paul, Jason Kidd and John Stockton on the assists chart
James scored four points and notched an assist in the extra period as the Lakers got a much-needed win.
Los Angeles are 13th in the West – two games out of the play-in tournament – with a 24-28 record as Anthony Davis has missed roughly half of the season with injury.
Tuesday was James’ first game at Madison Square Garden since January 2020. He missed one game because of injury and then was suspended last season after striking Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart in the face.
He’ll look to continue chipping away at Abdul-Jabbar’s record in upcoming games vs. the Pacers, Pelicans and Thunder.