Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Sets Career Points Record.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Sets Career Points Record. When Los Angeles Laker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored a basket with his signature skyhook late in a 1984 game against the Utah Jazz, he became the National Basketball Association's all-time scoring leader with 31,421 points, surpassing Wilt Chamberlain for the title. . Abdul-Jabbar Sets Record After Los Angeles Laker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sank a trademark hook shot midway through the fourth quarter of a game against the Utah Jazz in the spring of 1984, his teammates surrounded and embraced him. The 12-foot skyhook that rolled off Abdul-Jabbar's fingertips, soared over his taller defender, and fluttered through the net gave him the 31,420th and 31,421st points of his career. Lakers head coach Pat Riley cried. The crowd roared. Abdul-Jabbar sighed. Nearly 15 years after scoring 29 points in his National Basketball Association (NBA) debut, Abdul-Jabbar surpassed Wilt Chamberlain to become the most prolific scorer in league history. "That's what greatness is all about," Riley told the New York Times. "Wilt set the standard. Now Kareem has done it, and it's out there now for somebody else to pursue. Who and where? That remains to be seen. But it's gonna be a long time." Although he had obtained celebrity status, the media-shy Abdul-Jabbar wore it like a thrift-store suit. That awkwardness came out during the on-court ceremony held after his record-breaking basket. "It's hard to say anything after all is said and done," he told the crowd, cradling the game ball like a security blanket, according to the New York Times. To be sure, Abdul-Jabbar spoke the loudest with his skyhook, a brilliant athletic innovation. Broadcaster Eddie Doucette told the New York Times that he had coined the term more than a decade earlier when Abdul-Jabbar played for the Milwaukee Bucks. "I'd been watching him [all season], and one night it just hit me. It's so different from anybody else's hook. It's not a flat hook, a baby hook, or a jump hook. It's a pure hook. And it does come out of the sky." Fittingly, Doucette was on hand in Las Vegas (where the Jazz played a few of their home games that season) to describe Abdul-Jabbar's record-breaking skyhook to a national television audience. Abdul-Jabbar went into the game against the Utah Jazz needing 21 points to break the record. He was averaging about 20 points per contest, having boosted that figure from a season-low mark of 17.7 points per game in late December. A bout with viral hepatitis during training camp necessitated two weeks of bed rest for the 36-year-old star. Once again playing at 100 percent, Abdul-Jabbar was performing with a rookie's enthusiasm. It showed when he trotted onto the floor of the Thomas & Mack Center for the pregame announcements. Flashing the thumbs-up sign and offering a big grin, "The Big Guy" was greeted by a 45-second standing ovation from the Jazz faithful. Playing with postseason intensity, Abdul-Jabbar connected on his first four shots--three dunks and a pretty 14-foot fade-away jumper. He collected 12 first-quarter points and added 4 more in the second quarter, ending the half with a thunderous dunk as time expired. Although just 5 points shy of the record as the second half opened, Abdul-Jabbar did not abandon his unselfish style of play. When double-teamed, he passed off to the open man. In fact, he seemed to tease the crowd in the third quarter when, after hitting a 12-foot skyhook to pull within 3 points of the record, he passed for assists the next two times he handled the ball. In the fourth quarter, a free throw drew Abdul-Jabbar within 2 points. He tied the mark when forward James Worthy charged toward the basket and fed him for an easy dunk. His first shot at the record failed two minutes later when a 14-footer bounced off the rim. Then, with about nine minutes left in the game, Abdul-Jabbar got the ball to the right of the basket near the baseline. Guarded by 7-foot-4-inch center Mark Eaton and 6-foot guard Rickey Green, he faked a pass to Michael Cooper. Freezing the defenders, Abdul-Jabbar did a little pivot on his left foot and launched a pictureperfect skyhook over Eaton's outstretched left arm. The crowd erupted after the ball sailed through the basket. The hoop put Los Angeles up 112-93 and put AbdulJabbar 2 points past Chamberlain's record. Eleven days before his 37th birthday, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar became the NBA's all-time leading scorer. Play stopped as Abdul-Jabbar was swarmed by players, coaches, photographers, and reporters. During the ceremony he thanked his family and fans. He left the game with 22 points on 10-of-14 field-goal shooting and 2-of-2 free-throw shooting, along with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. The Lakers won the game, 129-115. Among the many basketball figures offering praise for Abdul-Jabbar's achievement was Kansas City Kings head coach Cotton Fitzsimmons. "Kareem scored 15,000 of his points with skyhooks, dunks, and finger rolls," he told a writer for Sports Illustrated. "The other 16,000 he got by using his head. He's predictable, but that doesn't mean you can stop him. You can't." Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.