Retired basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar looks on during a ceremony where he presented the Trophy for the leagues annual Social Justice Champion award to Carmelo Anthony #7 of the Los Angeles Lakers prior to a game against the Denver Nuggets at Crypto.com Arena on April 03, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. Copyright 2022 NBAE Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images/AFP
LOS ANGELES – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will be in the stands for two Lakers home games in which LeBron James is likely to surpass him and become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, a source close to the Lakers great told Reuters on Thursday.
Abdul-Jabbar and James have had a frosty relationship amid a range of public disagreements leaving some to wonder whether the Hall of Famer would want to witness the fall of the record he has held for nearly four decades.
Abdul-Jabbar criticized James for saying that getting the COVID-19 vaccine was a personal choice and has described James’s on-court celebrations as “stupid and childish.”
LeBron James #6 of the Los Angeles Lakers against the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on February 02, 2023 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Andy Lyons/Getty Images/AFP
Magic Johnson in October said losing the scoring title would be a “hard pill to swallow” for his former team mate, a six-times champion and 19-times All-Star who retired in 1989.
James raised eyebrows in September when after being asked his thoughts on potentially passing Abdul-Jabbar and his relationship with him he offered a curt reply.
“No thoughts and no relationship,” James told reporters.
On this day in 2005… LeBron went up high vs. Miami!
James is 63 points from the all-time scoring record. pic.twitter.com/oDsl8Wh8S9
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) February 3, 2023
James, who scored 26 points in a 112-111 win over the Pacers in Indiana on Thursday, only needs 63 points to pass Abdul-Jabbar’s career total of 38,387.
The Lakers next head to New Orleans to take on the Pelicans on Saturday before returning to Los Angeles to face the Thunder on Tuesday and the Bucks on Thursday.
James, 38, has shown no signs of slowing down in his 20th season. Since turning 38 on Dec. 30, the four-times champion has averaged nearly 35 points per game.