LeBron James Now No. 2 All-Time NBA Scorer, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Next

UPDATE: LeBron James is now the No. 2 all-time scorer in NBA history, passing former Laker Karl Malone. Ahead lies another former Laker, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Malone scored 36,928 points. Abdul-Jabbar’s record of 38,387 is in reach by next year.

James has officially scored more points all-time in the regular season and playoffs than any other player. But the National Basketball Assn. considers the all-time scoring record to be regular season only. Thus, Abdul-Jabbar is still No. 1 in the books as the official scoring champion.

“I will not allow myself to think about it. I’ve always just played the game the way I’ve been playing it over the years, and these things have just happened organically by just going out and playing the game the right way,” James said. “Hope to accomplish that at some point in my career, but I won’t think about it too much.”

The milestone was tempered somewhat by the Lakers losing to the Washington Wizards by 127-119. .

James came into the night needing 19 points to tie Malone. He ended up scoring 38 points. .

EARLIER: LeBron James set a record on Saturday, but not THE record. After hitting a third-quarter 3-pointer, James has officially scored more points all-time in the regular season and playoffs than any other player.

He passes fellow Laker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the record. However, the National Basketball Assn. considers the all-time scoring record to be regular season only. Thus, Abdul-Jabbar is still No. 1 in the books as the official scoring champion.