LeBron James gave an emotional speech after surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the all-time regular season scoring record on Tuesday, thanking those who helped him along the way.

James came into the contest against the Oklahoma City Thunder trailing by 35 points, and he needed only three quarters to get there, nailing a fadeaway jump shot late in the third period to bring up 36 points on 12-of-18 shooting.

That basket gave him his 38,388th regular season point, while he is already 1,644 points clear of Michael Jordan for the most points in playoff history.

During a lengthy delay after James broke the record, where Abdul-Jabbar came onto the court for a symbolic passing of the torch, James reflected on the journey to this moment.

"I just want to say thank you to the Lakers faithful, you guys are one-of-a-kind," he said.

"To be able to be in the presence of such a legend as great as Kareem means so much to me, it's very humbling – please give a standing ovation to 'The Captain' please.

"To my beautiful wife, my daughter, my two boys, my friends, my boys, my family, my mother – man, everyone who has ever been a part of this run with me the past 20 years.

"I just want to say I thank you so much, because I wouldn't be me without y'all. All y'all help, all y'all passion, all y'all sacrifices helped me get to this point. 

"To the NBA, to Adam Silver, to the late great David Stern, thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of something I've always dreamed about. 

"I would have never, ever, in a million years have dreamt this even better than it is tonight… thank you guys."