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Jan. 23 (UPI) -- LeBron James is now just 45 points away from passing Kobe Bryant on the NBA's all-time scoring list after netting 21 points in a Los Angeles Lakers win against the New York Knicks. LeBron scored 19 points in the first half of the 100-92 win Wednesday at Madison Square Garden in New York City. His 33,599 career points currently rank fourth on the career points list.
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"He was inspiration for me ... he helped me before he even knew of me because of what he was able to do," James said of Bryant.
"Just to be able to share the same jersey he wore, be with this historical franchise and represent the purple and gold [Lakers] is very humbling."
Anthony Davis scored a game-high 28 points in the Lakers' win. Marcus Morris led the Knicks with 20 points. The Lakers led 28-25 after the first quarter, fueled by 10 points from James and nine points from Davis. The Knicks fought back to tie the score at 48-48 at halftime. Davis was held to two points in the second quarter, while James added nine points in the frame.
The Lakers held a 76-70 lead entering the fourth quarter, before finishing off the Knicks down the stretch.
James also had six rebounds, five steals and five assists in the win. Damyean Dotson scored 17 points off the bench for the Knicks.
James has a chance to pass Bryant for third on the all-time scoring list when the Lakers face the Brooklyn Nets at 8 p.m. EST Thursday in Brooklyn. He will more likely pass Bryant when the Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers Saturday in Philadelphia. Kareem Abdul-Jabaar tops the NBA's all-time scoring list with 38,387 points. Karl Malone is in second place with 36,928.
James is averaging 26.2 points per game in his last six games. He is posting 25.2 points and 11 assists per game this season.
