Breaking News NBA Makes History with First Openly Gay Player

“I wanted to be the rookie of the year my rookie year, I wanted to [be named an] All-Star, I wanted to win championships, I wanted to be the MVP of the league, I wanted to be the Player of the Year, ” James told “Good Morning America” in an interview last week.

What wasn't on his list was breaking the all-time NBA scoring record, a feat the four-time MVP achieved last night against the Oklahoma City Thunder , surpassing the former all-time scoring record of 38, 387 points -- and doing so in front of the man who held the record for 38 years: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, left, hands the ball to Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James after passing Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA's all-time leading scorer during the second half of a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Feb. 7, 2023, in Los Angeles.

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“I never ever was like I want to break the all-time score. I never ever even thought about it and the fact that I’m like literally right here, it is mind-blowing.”

James now has 38, 390 points scored during his nearly 20-year career. He holds the record for all-time playoffs points and eighth in career assists.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar #33 of the Los Angeles Lakers shoots the ball against the New York Knicks on January 22, 1988 at The Forum in Inglewood, California.

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On Jan. 31, GMA co-anchor Michael Strahan spoke to James before he took the court to face the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Madison Square Garden is James’ self-proclaimed favorite place. He said the history of the arena is what makes it so special to him.

“I think, not only what's happened in this building over the years, but also the city, ” James said. “I almost think it's like a great Broadway show and I'm part of the cast.”

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Though he hasn't played for the Knicks -- he says he came very close in 2010 -- James was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003 before going to the Miami Heat in 2010, where he won his first two NBA championships. In 2014, James, an Ohio native, re-signed with the Cavaliers and led the team to a championship in 2016, breaking the Cleveland sports curse.

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) shoots over Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Feb. 2, 2023.

Now, James is with the Los Angeles Lakers, another legendary team, where he led the team to his fourth NBA championship in 2020.

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When asked if breaking the all-time scoring record officially makes James the greatest NBA player ever, the star said he didn't know.

I don't know if the record does, he reflected. The one thing I can tell you... I've always prided myself on saying, 'I want to be.' 'I want to be the greatest to play this game, ' you know ... and that came from a motivation to myself... my drive is to be the greatest of all time.

While he leads the Lakers on the court, James has another big job at home: raising three kids -- Bronny, Bryce and Zhuri -- with his wife, Savannah.

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“The best thing I've been able to guide my boys and my little girl is showing them the way and showing them you know about how to respect adults, how to be great in the community, ” said James, who added his advice for his children is to lead with independence.

LeBron James poses with his family, left-right, Bronny James, Bryce James, Zhuri James Savannah James and Gloria James, after passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA's all-time leading scorer, Feb. 7, 2023, in Los Angeles.

“At the end of the day, this is their walk in life, you have to be able to decide what journey you want to go. Mom and Dad are gonna give you the blueprint and you go from there.”

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Bronny, a high school senior and top draft prospect, is eligible for the NBA draft in 2024 and Bryce, a high school sophomore, in 2026, according to ESPN , creating a potential opening for James and his sons to play in the NBA together.

The 38-year-old player is only a few years shy of becoming the oldest active NBA player, but he said he’s not hanging up the crown just yet.

“No, I ain't there yet, I ain't there yet. My wife wishes I was there, though, ” he said. “I tell her, ‘I got a little bit more time left.'

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I want my legacy to be that all my teammates, and the people that played against me, know I play the game the right way and I competed at a high level. I never cheated the game ... I never cheated a process, he said.

But for me off the floor, I think you know me [as] having my own school in my hometown, [meeting] inspiring kids all over the world, being active in politics at times or social injustice and things that go on in regular life. Those are the things that I hope people talk about as well because those are things that last forever.The NBA celebrated its 70th anniversary in June and it's worth noting that the face of the game has changed drastically — as does any seventy-year-old person, proposition or property over time.

For many, the presence of black bodies and faces occupying roles from players to personnel seems as inevitable as it was initially implausible. The implausibility of a more perfect union took root in what Ron Thomas, director of Morehouse College's Journalism and Sports Program, describes as an unspoken ban on black basketball players among the league’s team owners.

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In his novel, They Cleared the Lane, Thomas, who has written extensively about the NBA’s black pioneers, explains how the desire of a small group of team owners to secure the talent and gate attraction of black players eventually outweighed the reluctance of a majority of others.

The tip-off took place in 1950 with three draft picks and a mid-season signing: Chuck Cooper, Earl Lloyd, Nathan “Sweetwater” Clifton and Hank DeZonie. A few months later, Earl Lloyd, who was just 22 at the time, crashed the boards of NBA integration on the night of October 31, 1950 when the Washington Capitols faced the Rochester Royals - making Lloyd, a Washington Capitol, the first black player to compete in an NBA game.

The league that young Earl Lloyd occupied was drastically different than the one we know today, where black players make up 74 percent of the league. From being spit upon, denied admission in hotels and restaurants — which prohibited them from dining or lodging with their teammates, the racism black players faced paralleled that which most African Americans of the time encountered, albeit in the very public arena of professional sports.

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Earl Lloyd #11 of the Syracuse Nationals poses for a mock action portrait circa 1956 at the Onondaga War Memorial Arena in Syracuse, New York. NBAE/Getty Images

Like most athletes of his era, Lloyd was acutely aware his talent and character, on and off the court, which made him an example of, and in many ways foretold, what purpose-driven players can accomplish on an even playing field.

The salaries, endorsement opportunities and lanes for social mobility of early NBA players were dramatically different than that of today’s players too. All three kept players and their families in close proximity to the average black professional. This made it very common for players to have jobs during the off-season.

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Lloyd’s mastery of the game he loved prepared him to become the NBA’s first black assistant coach and second black head coach. His connection and commitment to his community compelled him to serve young people as a placement administrator for the Detroit public school system; the director of programs for underprivileged children teaching job skills; and as a recruiter of young black executive talent for Chrysler before serving as Community Relations Director for the Bing Group, a Detroit manufacturing company in the 1990s.

Earl Lloyd #11 of the Syracuse Nationals shoots against Jack Nichols #16 of the Boston Celtics circa 1958 at the Onondaga War Memorial Arena in Syracuse, New York. NBAE/Getty Images

So what can we learn from Earl Lloyd’s story? According to Keith Clinkscales, executive producers of the award-winning documentary Black Magic, which examines Civil Rights-era America through the prism of basketball, and CEO of The Shadow League, a website that sits at the intersection of sports and culture, “Earl Lloyd and other early black basketball players demonstrated grace and the ability to perform at high levels despite societal, economic and racial pressures at a time when America had not yet matured to the idea of racial equality.”

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Arka Sengupta, Jack Lechner, David Friendly, Carmelo Anthony, Kawhi Leonard, Michael Finley and Tony Parker have joined forces with the Lloyd Family Foundation and directors Coodie & Chike to tell Earl Lloyd’s story. The First to Do It will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2017 before airing nationally.

The stories of Lloyd, Cooper, Clifton, Dezonie and countless other men

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