After nearly two decades, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has already made his mark in the NBA record books.
He reached a new peak on Sunday, hitting a milestone that no other player in league history has achieved.
James found long-time friend Carmelo Anthony for a 3-pointer from the left wing for the second assist of the night during the second quarter against the Phoenix Suns, earning him 10,000 for his career. With this, James became the first player in NBA history to score 30,000 career points, 10,000 rebounds, and 10,000 assists.
James finished Sunday’s 140-11 loss to the Lakers with 31 points, seven rebounds and six assists. He scored his career tally of 36,824 points, 10,150 rebounds and 10,004 assists. James achieved his 10,000th career rebound on January 19.
In his 19th season, James’ all-around game has been his trademark. He is third in points and closes on Karl Malone in second. He is seventh in assists and 39th in rebounds. James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are the only players to be ranked in the top 50 in all three categories.
Many players are known for all their games throughout the league’s history, but few have reached career numbers more than James.
No other player has 9,000 rebounds and 9,000 assists. Jason Kidd is the only other player to have at least 8,000 of each: 8,725 rebounds and 12,091 assists. Kidd was not the scorer that James completed his 19-year career with 17,529 points.
Oscar Robertson, the first player to average a triple-double for a season, had 26,710 points, 7,804 rebounds and 9,887 assists in 14 seasons. NBA’s all-time triple-double leader and James Lakers teammate Russell Westbrook finished Sunday’s game with 23,047 points, 7,455 rebounds and 8,531 assists.
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