Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James, right, works against Toronto Raptors’ P.J. Tucker, left, and Serge Ibaka. AP
CLEVELAND — LeBron James has moved past Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the No. 2 scorer in NBA playoff history.
James entered Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals between Cleveland and Toronto on Wednesday (Thursday Manila time) needing 25 points to surpass Abdul-Jabbar (5,762 points). The Cavaliers star did so with a 3-pointer with 8:41 left in the third quarter.
Moments later, James got a rousing ovation from the Cleveland crowd when his achievement was shown on the giant scoreboard.
Trying to get to his seventh straight NBA Finals, the 32-year-old James now only trails Michael Jordan, who scored 5,987 points in 179 postseason games. James has played in 205 playoff games over 14 seasons.
James has been soaring up a variety of scoring lists all season. He’s currently seventh on the career scoring list with 28,787 points in the regular season.
Abdul-Jabbar tops that list with 38,387 points during his Hall of Fame career.