LeBron James has put the ball in the basket more than any other player in NBA history.
James, 41, routinely sets records due to his longevity and he could look to add to his new career field goals mark on Friday night when the Lakers host the struggling Indiana Pacers.
James scored 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting in Thursday’s 120-113 road loss to the Denver Nuggets. That gave him 15,842 career field goals, five more than legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Abdul-Jabbar set his record in 1,560 career games. James passed Abdul-Jabbar while playing in Game No. 1,606 when he made a turnaround jumper late in the first quarter.
“At the end of the day, just being linked, and my name’s been mentioned with some of the greatest ever to play this game, it’s always been humbling and pretty cool,” James said. “It’s a pretty cool thing. I grew up watching, reading, analyzing a lot of the greats.”
Lakers coach JJ Redick said it’s amazing that James still is an all-around force in his early 40s.
“He has a lot of records and has accumulated a lot of assists, rebounds, steals and blocks in his career,” Redick said. “He’s been a complete player for 23 years. It’s still remarkable how dynamic he is in transition.”
But it is unclear whether James will play Friday after injuring his left elbow in a fall late in the record-setting game. Redick said James will undergo testing.
James is waiting to see how the situation shakes out.
“Pretty sore right now,” James said. “… Day-to-day, we’ll see what happens.”
Deandre Ayton (left knee) was injured in the first quarter and may not be available Friday.
Luka Doncic led Los Angeles with 27 points on a night in which the club had a three-game winning streak snapped.
The game against Indiana is the beginning of a five-game homestand for the Lakers.
The Pacers have lost seven straight games and are tied for the second-worst record (15-47) in the NBA with the Brooklyn Nets. Only the Sacramento Kings (14-50) have a worse mark.
The Pacers have lost their past four games by an average of 21.8 points.
Indiana was routed 130-107 by the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday to start a four-game road trip.
“We were not ready and I will take my share of the blame for that,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said of the loss in Inglewood. “I got to get these guys more ready to play on Friday night.”
Pascal Siakam had 29 points against the Clippers after missing three games due to a sprained left wrist.
Aaron Nesmith returned from a right ankle injury but had just two points on 1-of-8 shooting. He had missed the previous five games.
Nesmith is on the injury report for the game against the Lakers due to the ankle plus a lower-back ailment. The Pacers listed him as probable along with Siakam (wrist) and Andrew Nembhard (back, neck).
Ivica Zubac (sprained left ankle) hasn’t played for Indiana since being acquired in the deal that sent Bennedict Mathurin to the Clippers at the trade deadline. Carlisle said Zubac will see some action for the club.
“Yeah, he’ll play this season,” Carlisle said. “… He’s doing better, but he’s not there yet, and we’re not going to send a guy out there to play who isn’t 100 percent.”
This is the first of two games between the teams. The rematch in Indianapolis is slated for March 25.
The Lakers swept last season’s two meetings and have won four of the past five matchups.
–Field Level Media
