LeBron James surpasses Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as second all-time leading scorer in NBA playoffs

The small forward LeBron James further elevated his legendary status in professional basketball by surpassing the legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the second all-time leading scorer in NBA playoffs history.

He did it in the second game of the Eastern Conference semifinals, which they won by a blowout score of 125-103. James was the leading scorer with 39 points.

James entered the game trailing Abdul-Jabbar by 24 points (5,762) and surpassed the legendary Hall of Fame member by hitting a three-pointer in the third period, which ended with 17 points and the Cavaliers pulled ahead by 26 points on the scoreboard.

The Cavaliers star, with 5,801 points, will now attempt to catch up to Jordan, who holds the record with 5,987 points, the most in NBA playoffs history.

James achieved this new sports milestone with 8 minutes and 41 seconds left in the third period. When it was displayed on the scoreboard, the Cavaliers fans, who filled the stands of Quicken Loans Arena, gave him a standing ovation.

James, who at 32 years old is aiming to reach his seventh consecutive NBA Finals, needed 205 playoff games in 14 professional seasons to surpass Abdul-Jabbar. In comparison, Jordan played 179 postseason games.

The Cavaliers' star small forward, who set a series of statistical advances in the league during the regular season, now has a total of 28,787 career points, placing him in seventh place on the all-time list.

Abdul-Jabbar tops the all-time list as the leading scorer with 38,387 points.

"I have always said that the real competition begins in May and now I feel very comfortable with what we have achieved so far," James said after the game. "I feel blessed to have been able to contribute tonight in ways that helped the team secure the victory."

James also became the fourth player in NBA history to reach 300 three-pointers in playoff competition, joining former shooting guard Ray Allen (385), former small forward Reggie Miller (320), and veteran Argentine shooting guard Manu Ginobili (312) of the San Antonio Spurs.

James reiterated that he is not interested in talking about awards or individual records, but rather another important victory that the team achieved in a semifinal series they now lead 2-0 in the best of seven format.