NBA stars react to LeBron James' 47-point game on his 38th birthday / News - Basketnews.com

LeBron James' previous best this season was 39 points against the San Antonio Spurs last month.

Credit: Getty Images via AFP-Scanpix Credit Getty Images via AFP-Scanpix

LeBron James showed no signs of slowing down in his 20th year in the NBA as the Los Angeles Lakers superstar celebrated his 38th birthday on Friday with an astonishing 47-point performance in a 130-121 win over the Atlanta Hawks.

Player of the Game EFF 51 LeBron James Points 47 Accuracy 18-27 Rebounds 10 Assists 9

A single assist was all that stood between James and the first birthday triple-double in NBA history, as he added 10 rebounds and 9 dimes. LeBron also made a season-high 18 field goals and was 4-for-6 on 3-point attempts.

James' 47 points were good enough to make him the fourth player aged 38 or older in league history to drop at least 45 (Michael Jordan (3 times), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Jamal Crawford).

The scoring tally trails only the birthday 48 LeBron put on the Hawks in 2009 when he turned 25. And it marked his 70th career game of 40-plus points, tying Kareem and Rick Barry for 8th all-time.

"Just awesome man, he's put the team on his back and been doing what he's done for the last 20 years. A hell of a performance," coach Darvin Ham said after the Friday game.

"Dropping 47 [points] is inspiring because he plays the game the right way... He motivates and inspires the team to go out there and do their jobs."

James now trails Abdul-Jabbar by only 527 points for the all-time lead.

Reactions on social media:

Like what we are doing? You can express your gratitude here.