LeBron James breaks down after beating Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's NBA scoring record

LeBron James has spoken out after breaking an all-time NBA record, outperforming Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Prior to the game, James admitted how much of an achievement it would be to become the NBA player with the most points in history.

Adam Silver, commissioner of the NBA, released a statement soon after the game.

It reads: "Congratulations to LeBron on breaking one of the most hallowed records in all of sport... it's a towering achievement that speaks to his sustained excellence over 20 seasons in the league."

After being handed over a basketball by Abdul-Jabbar on the side of the court to mark the passing of the NBA record baton, James said: "Everybody that has ever been a part of this run with me the last 20-plus years, I want to say thank you so much because I wouldn't be me without all you. You all helped. Your passion and sacrifices helped me to get to this point.

"And to the NBA to Adam Silver, to the late great David Stern, thank you very much for allowing me to be a part of something I always dreamed about. I would never in a million years dreamt this to be even better than what it is tonight."

James' family addressed his record-breaking score in a video posted by NBACentral.

Savannah James, LeBron's wife, said: "Hi my love, I am here to congratulate you on becoming the NBA's all-time leading score. I am so proud of you, I witness day in and day out the hard work, the sacrifice, and the professionalism you put into this game every single day.

"I know how hard you work, I know this wasn't something you set out to do. But you've done it and you should congratulate yourself, you should celebrate yourself, you deserve all the flowers, you deserve all the respect and I just want to tell you how proud of you I am."