LeBron James breaks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s career minutes record
On a historic Thursday night, LeBron James made basketball history by breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s long-held record for the most regular-season career minutes played. James achieved the milestone just one minute and 23 seconds into the second quarter of the game against the Sacramento Kings, marking his 57,447th minute on the court.
Speaking about the achievement, James said, “It’s a pretty cool honour, obviously, anytime I’m linked with some of the greats that ever played this game.” James had a solid performance, finishing the game with 19 points in 34 minutes, helping his team secure a 113-100 victory.
He added, “To know I’ve been available to my teammates, to know I’ve been able to do this at a high level for two decades and continue to put myself in our record books in this game of basketball that I love so much in the best league in the world is pretty cool, and it’s very, very humbling.”
In comparison, Abdul-Jabbar played 57,446 minutes over 20 seasons and 1,560 games. James, on the other hand, has now played 57,471 minutes across 22 seasons and 1,517 games, demonstrating his remarkable durability and longevity in the sport.
Earlier this season, on November 27, 2023, James surpassed Abdul-Jabbar’s total for combined regular-season and playoff minutes, reaching an impressive 66,318 minutes after playing 29 minutes in a game against Philadelphia.
Thursday’s game also saw James achieve another milestone, as his 19 points made him the 13th player in Lakers history to score over 10,000 points for the franchise.
