NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and the league prepare to honor LA Lakers superstar LeBron James, who is closing in on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's record for most career points scored.
Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar amassed 38,387 points throughout his career, whereas James presently has 38,104. James is expected to set a new record sometime in the first week of February.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver has confirmed that a game would be paused to observe such an event, per Basket News.
Adam Silver said in a media conference in Paris that once LeBron James breaks the record, they will make sure to pause the game and record history. "We'll stop and make sure that we've done our jobs as the archivists of the NBA."
Silver added that they would see to it that there is a "balance" of interests as LeBron James and the Lakers will be playing against a team that will very much want to win that night.
"Most likely, we will do something at the moment, but then we will plan a larger celebration," he noted.
ESPN reports that the larger party Silver said will take place in February during NBA All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City.
Kareem Appreciates LeBron's Greatness
For the season, James is averaging 29.5 points per game. If he continues that pace, he will need only nine more games to overtake Abdul-Jabbar. If James doesn't miss any games and the rate is maintained, the milestone would come against the Oklahoma City Thunder at home on February 7.
If LeBron misses any games in the next three weeks, the Lakers' February 9 home game against the Bucks and February 11 road game against the Warriors might create records.
Last year, six-time NBA champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar noted that he'll be "happy to see" LeBron James break his all-time scoring record, per CBS Sports.
"I don't regard records as personal successes, but rather as human achievements," the basketball legend said. "If one person can do something that's never been done, that means we all have a shot at doing it. It's a source of hope and inspiration."
LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo Lead 2023 NBA All-Star Votes
Meanwhile, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo lead the Western and Eastern Conferences, respectively, in the third fan returns of NBA All-Star Voting presented by AT&T, as per an NBA report.
By a margin of 132,014 points, Antetokounmpo has surpassed Kevin Durant, a forward for the Brooklyn Nets, for the top spot in the Eastern Conference voting. Jayson Tatum, a forward for the Boston Celtics, is now third among East frontcourt stars after Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant, with 203,379 votes, a significant advantage over Joel Embiid, a center for the Philadelphia 76ers.
The East guard voting is tight, with Cleveland's Donovan Mitchell behind Kyrie Irving by only 116,808.
The 2023 NBA All-Star Game starting lineup will partly be decided by fan votes. At the same rate of 25%, each is an active NBA player and a group of media experts.
Voting for the AT&T NBA All-Star Game ends on Saturday, January 21, at 11:59 p.m. ET. Each fan vote is worth three times on Friday, the 20th, the last "3-for-1 Day."
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