LeBron James is getting closer to breaking Kareem Abdul-scoring Jabbar's record, but Tuesday night's rise to the top of the NBA's all-time assists list was a nice reminder of James' all-around ability.
James passed Mark Jackson (10,334 career assists) and Steve Nash (10,335) for sole ownership of fourth place on the NBA's all-time career assists record with 11 assists against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Only Chris Paul (11,246 as of Tuesday), Jason Kidd (12,091), and John Stockton are ahead of him (15,806).
James is now just days away from overtaking Abdul-Jabbar, who has been the NBA's all-time best scorer since 1984, even though it's improbable that he or anyone else will ever catch Stockton in assists. Abdul-Jabbar was ahead of James by 116 points going into the game. He now needs 89 more points to surpass Magic Johnson as the all-time leading scorer in the NBA after scoring 28 points and recording a historic triple-double in the Los Angeles Lakers' 129-123 overtime victory over the New York Knicks.
