LeBron James Makes NBA History After Return to Los Angeles Lakers
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LeBron James Reveals Why He Stepped Away From Lakers
LeBron James continues to earn his status as the G.O.A.T.
Afterrecently steppingaway due to injury, the Los Angeles Lakers star made basketball league history when he returned to the court on Dec. 19. During a 113-100 game against the Sacramento Kings, LeBron broke the record for most minutes played in NBA history.
"Congrats to @KingJames of the @Lakers," the NBA wrote on X, formerly Twitter, Dec. 19, "for becoming the NBA's all-time leader in TOTAL MINUTES PLAYED in the regular season!"
The 39-year-old has officially played 57,471 minutes in 1,517 games, taking over the record previously held by six-time NBA MVP and fellow Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of 57,446 minutes.
But that wasn't the only milestone for LeBron during the game, as he also crossed the 10,000-point threshold with the Lakers, making him the No. 13 scorer in the team's history. The No. 1 spot is still held by Kobe Bryant with 33,643 points scored during his 20 years with the team.
And LeBron was feeling especially grateful for the record-breaking achievements.
"It's just a commitment to the craft and to the passion and love I have for the game," he said in a press conference after the game, via NBA.com. "I don't take much time in the offseason. A little bit more time now.
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He added, "I didn't take much time in the offseason, no matter if I was making the 10 Finals appearances back to back and just always trying to keep my body in tip-top shape."
"If it was up to just me, I probably would've played," LeBron told reporters after the team's Dec. 15 match against the Memphis Grizzlies, per ESPN. "It would've been hard to keep me away from it. I have a team and I got to listen to them as well. They look out for my best interest."
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But LeBron—who shares children LeBron 'Bronny' JamesJr., 20, Bryce, 17, and Zhuri, 10, with wife Savannah James—was ultimately grateful he took the time he needed.
"I had an opportunity to take more days and get my mind, body and everything where I wanted it to be for tonight," he continued. "And it worked out."
And it's especially important that he gets the chance to play alongside son Bronny, who was recruited by the Lakers earlier this year and also plays with the South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League. To see more athletes who followed in their parent's footsteps, keep reading.