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ORLANDO – LeBron James, who already holds the NBA career records for points and minutes played, has now become the league’s all-time leader in games played.
On Saturday, James appeared in his 1,612th career game against the Orlando Magic, surpassing the record previously held by Hall of Fame center Robert Parish.
This milestone highlights James’s extraordinary longevity in the league. Currently, he is playing highly efficient basketball while supporting Lakers guards Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves. Entering Saturday’s game, James was shooting 64.6 percent from the field and averaging 20.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 5.8 assists over his previous five games.
For the season, James is averaging 21.3 points per game, marking his 23rd consecutive season scoring at least 20 points per game. He came into the game shooting 51.6 percent from the field and has maintained a shooting percentage above 50 percent in 15 of the last 17 years.
“I’ve always wanted to be available to my teammates, whether in Cleveland, here in Miami, or now in L.A.,” James said after the Lakers’ victory over the Heat on Thursday.
“It takes a lot. It’s a mental toll, man, trying to play a lot and be out there throughout this whole thing, especially under the circumstances I’ve been given. It’s just a lot, man.”
Over his record 23 seasons, James has played in 87.7 percent of the games he was eligible for—a figure that would be even higher if not for injuries during his time with the Lakers.
James has missed at least 10 games in every Lakers season except the 2019-20 championship year. Prior to joining the Lakers, he had missed more than 10 games only once in his career.
Known for his high-impact playing style, James remains one of the NBA’s best transition players at 41 years old. He ranks 10th in career usage rate and had logged 60,676 regular-season minutes entering Saturday—equivalent to over 42 full days of NBA basketball.
Including playoff games, James has taken the court 1,904 times for a total of 72,738 minutes.
When asked last month what best defines James’s greatness, Lakers coach JJ Redick emphasized his commitment.
“It’s the commitment to do all the things necessary to be great,” Redick said. “I often use the term ‘competitive stamina’ with him. You need a very high capacity to do things over and over again and ring the bell repeatedly.”
“So, it’s that commitment to greatness combined with the competitive stamina to do everything required.”
