The Los Angeles Lakers faced a daunting job on Saturday night when they welcomed Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and the reigning champion Denver Nuggets. Aside from the Lakers’ quest to halt their losing skid against Denver, the other big story heading into the game was LeBron James’s impending milestone as the first player to surpass 40,000 career points.

Early in the second quarter, he would accomplish exactly that, attacking the basket and completing a layup to achieve an impossible goal. Many people thought it would be impossible to surpass Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the top slot, but now LeBron is breaking that record even further by building a club where only he can be found.

What LeBron has accomplished is genuinely remarkable, and even the opposition recognises it. After the game, Jokic congratulated James on attaining that milestone.

“It’s a tremendous accomplishment,” Jokic added. “It’s astounding how many years he’s been playing at such a high level. It’s difficult to see who can reach him right now. Maybe [Anthony Edwards] or Luka [Doncic] if they play long enough… It’s incredible to share the court with a player like [LeBron].

Unfortunately for LeBron and the Lakers, he was unable to fully appreciate the accomplishment as Jokic and Murray seized control in the second half, leading Denver to a 10-point victory, their eighth straight over L.A.

Murray appreciated LeBron’s feat, but he was also delighted to ruin the night with a Nuggets victory.

“Obviously the first player to do that,” Murray explained. “I believe the most impressive thing for me is his durability and consistency in maintaining that level of performance over time, regardless of age. Knock on wood, I suppose the most important thing is not to be wounded.

“But it was great to come in here and turn it off. We simply wanted to take the life out of the arena, and we did an excellent job of weathering the storm and throwing all the haymakers.”

Murray scored 17 of his 24 points after halftime, helping the Nuggets pull away down the line despite the Lakers’ best efforts. What LeBron achieved on Thursday night may not be seen again for decades, yet Jokic, Murray, and the Nuggets left the court smiling.

LeBron James describes milestone as ‘bittersweet’ due to Lakers’ loss.

LeBron James has always prioritised winning first and foremost. While LeBron praised the Lakers fans for their support after achieving the 40,000-point milestone and said it was wonderful to be the first to do something like this, he said it was bittersweet in the end because the Lakers lost.

“But for me, the main thing is always the main thing, and that’s to win,” he said. “I just hate that it had to happen in a defeat, especially against a club that plays so brilliantly. And we played some nice basketball tonight but couldn’t finish it off. So bittersweet. But I had a great time tonight out on the floor.”