It was another impressive scoring night for arguably the greatest basketball player of his generation. On Saturday, LeBron James scored 27 points in the Los Angeles Lakers' tight loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, 131-126.

But history awaits James this week. The NBA megastar needs just 36 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles to become the league's all-time leading scorer.

It is almost a certainty that James will pass Laker great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on his home court. Should James fail to score 36 against the lowly Thunder, he will most likely achieve the record on Thursday at Crypto.com Arena against the 2021 NBA Champion Milwaukee Bucks, the team that drafted Abdul-Jabbar in 1969. Both games will be televised on TNT.

Abdul-Jabbar became the scoring leader nearly 39 years ago after he eclipsed another legendary Laker center, Wilt Chamberlain. Abdul-Jabbar would continue his career for five more seasons after breaking the record, adding to an already spectacular resume.

Abdul-Jabbar and James reached the milestone in very different ways. Abdul-Jabbar, a slender 7-footer, dominated halfcourt sets with his trademark sky hook in the 1970s and then managed to still flourish with the shot when the pace of the game became more uptempo during the Showtime 80s.

In an era in which teams have placed a high premium on 3-point shooting, James relied on a dribble-drive penetration and a fluid open-court style to consistently finish among the top scorers in the league. Even in 2022-23, the 38-year-old is averaging 30 points per game, which makes the 36 points he needs all the more tantalizing.

Before James' scoring run, only Utah Jazz superstar Karl Malone posed a legitimate threat to Abdul-Jabbar's scoring record. In yet another example of the Lakers' stranglehold on the game's great players, Malone would end his career in a Laker uniform but the prospect of the Mailman becoming the all-time leading scorer may have left some die-hard Laker fans feeling more than a little squeamish that Abdul-Jabbar was no longer No. 1.

Abdul-Jabbar entered the league as a scoring machine. It was a time when Chamberlain saw his scoring numbers decline after suffering a devastating knee injury in November 1969 and with Bill Russell recently retired. The NBA didn't have a 3-point line until 1979-80, and a low-post threat was considered vital for success. For basically all of the 1970s and into much of the 1980s, there was basically no better scorer within 12 feet of the hoop than Abdul-Jabbar. Retiring in 1989 at age 42, he ended his career with 38,387 points in 1,560 games. (James will reach the milestone in 1,410 or 1,411 games.)

On April 5, 1984, the Lakers were playing the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City. The crowd rose to their feet in anticipation of a record-setting score. The packed audience was not disappointed in how Abdul-Jabbar scored his 31,422nd point.

The Lakers looked to their captain in a half-court set, as the timeless voice of Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn called Abdul-Jabbar's trademark hook shot over 7-foot-4 Mark Eaton, one of the all-time greatest defensive centers, and who, like Abdul-Jabbar, played college basketball at powerhouse UCLA. The assist fittingly would come from Magic Johnson, who would later become the all-time assist leader, surpassing Abdul-Jabbar's Bucks teammate Oscar Robertson.

The referees stopped the game and Abdul-Jabbar's parents celebrated the crowning achievement on the floor of the Salt Palace. Also celebrating the feat with Abdul-Jabbar were names who have their own place in Laker lore: Hall of Famers Johnson, forwards Bob McAdoo and James Worthy, and head coach Pat Riley.

"The pictures tell the words," said Hearn. "They love their captain. They love their leader. And suffice it to say, ladies and gentlemen, the new king of scoring has ascended his throne."

But Hearn got it wrong when he added, "This man has accomplished something that I don't believe — and I mean this sincerely — I don't think this will ever happen again."

In Hearn's defense, he never got a chance to see James.

James entered the NBA in 2003 as a 19-year-old phenom who had all but sealed his entrance into the Hall of Fame. Before he made his debut, experts were already crowning him as a legend in the making and in the mold of Michael Jordan.

James didn't take the conventional road. While many basketball superstars have stuck with one team for their entire career, James has switched teams three times and won titles with each of them. Indeed, while the impending milestone may have a Laker feel to it, there will certainly be a smell of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat in the air this week.

Versatility has distinguished James from his peers. As he approaches the scoring record, he is also fourth in career assists, leaving Abdul-Jabbar (No. 48) and Jordan (No. 50) in the dust. James is also No. 32 in rebounds.

And James is still climbing while not showing any real signs of slowing down. This season, he is averaging 8.5 rebounds and 7.1 assists.

James has only led the league in scoring once (2007-08) but it's been James' consistency and longevity that has led him to this moment. Aside from his rookie season, James has averaged at least 25 points per game in every season.

Unlike Malone, who James passed as the No. 2 scorer in March 2022, the scoring has come alongside other high-scoring teammates. Superstars Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis have all shared the scoring load with James.

A fan of sports outside of basketball, James has understood the importance of this occasion.

"I think it's one of the greatest records in sports in general," James recently said.

"I think it's up there with the home run record in baseball. It's just one of those records that you just don't ever see or think that will be broken. You had Hank Aaron that had it for so long and then you see the likes of like Sammy [Sosa] and Mark McGwire and those guys start climbing and it was like 'oh man, this thing could really happen.'

"And you start really watching it and paying attention to it and you seeing Sammy and Mark McGwire go up to bat and you're like they got a chance to knock it out every single time. And it was fun for me as a sports person, it was fun just watching those guys go up to bat and chase it.

"I grew up being a historian of all sports and understanding that, I don't have the number planted in my head, the actual real number. I know it's 38-something, but I know it's been Kareem my whole life. So it's pretty cool, it's pretty cool."

Chamberlain was not in attendance in Salt Lake City when Abdul-Jabbar broke the record.

Abdul-Jabbar will be in the building when James scores his 38,388th point.