CNN —
LeBron James added another historic achievement to his illustrious career on Thursday night, becoming the NBA’s all-time leader in regular season minutes played. The Los Angeles Lakers superstar surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record of 57,446 minutes played during the team’s game against the Sacramento Kings at the Golden 1 Center in California.
Playing in his 22nd season in the NBA, James entered the game against the Sacramento Kings with 57,437 minutes played, just 10-shy of eclipsing Abdul-Jabbar’s record, according to the Lakers. He set the mark in the second quarter.
“It’s just a commitment to the craft and to the passion and love I have for the game,” James said after the Lakers shootaround, according to NBA.com. “I don’t take much time in the offseason. A little bit more time now.
“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.”
Last season, James became the league’s all-time leader in minutes played, including playoffs, also surpassing the record previously held by Abdul-Jabbar (66,297) in a loss against the Philadelphia 76ers in November 2023.
Congrats to @KingJames of the @Lakers for becoming the NBA’s all-time leader in TOTAL MINUTES PLAYED in the regular season! pic.twitter.com/XsiKE57OjB — NBA (@NBA) December 20, 2024
Thursday night’s milestone is the latest in the highly decorated career of one of the greatest players in the sport’s history.
Earlier this season, the four-time MVP accomplished a feat that further cemented his unparalleled longevity in the game, playing alongside his son Bronny James to become the first father-son duo to take the court together in an NBA game in the league’s history.
The NBA’s all-time leading scorer James is a four-time NBA champion, and has made a record 20 All-Star appearances, among a long list of accomplishments since being drafted first overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003.
This is a developing story and will be updated.