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James understood his historic run of scoring in double figures was threatened. At the decisive instant, though, it was not his focus.

The right decision was to pass the rock – and he executed. With that selfless act, the legendary streak came to an end.

James's astounding run of 1,297 consecutive regular-season games with 10+ points was snapped this past Thursday, when basketball's greatest scorer had only eight total points in the Los Angeles Lakers' close win against Toronto. He delivered the decisive pass, setting up Rui Hachimura to hit a three-pointer as time expired.

“Zero,” James stated when asked on the record concluding. “The team got the victory.”

A Team-First Choice Secures Victory

LeBron had the chance to sought to clinch the contest – while also extending his record – with the last shot, but he chose to pass to his teammate on the wing. Rui connected, prompting James raised his arms with his hands in the air.

“Just playing basketball the right way. You always make the correct play,” James noted. That is my philosophy. That’s how I was instructed to play. That's what I've done for two decades.”

James is very conscious of how many points he's scored at all times,” stated the team's head coach the coach. He made the play like he’s done countless times.”

The Record's Final Moments

LeBron checked back into the contest for the final time at under five and a half minutes to go, the win along with the historic run both hanging in the balance. At that stage, he had six points from a 3-for-15 performance by that point.

He managed a basket at under two minutes remaining to tie the game and missed a shot with 1:01 left which could have gotten him to double digits.

He avoided taking another shot – though the opportunity was there. Austin Reaves found him with a few seconds left, yet LeBron chose to make the extra pass instead of shooting.

“The basketball gods, when you play it the right way, they will bless you,” the coach concluded.

A Look Back at a Staggering Run

The record started back in January 2007. It was, by far the greatest such streak the league has ever seen: Michael Jordan had 866 consecutive games with 10+ points, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had 787 such games, and Karl Malone was fourth on the list with 575.

“He’s such a team-oriented player,” noted teammate a fellow Laker.

He simply plays hoops. The chance was there but given who he is on the court and just who he is as an individual, he made the team play, passed it to Rui and we won the victory.”

Getting to ten points was usually a formality long before the final period. During James’s streak, he had achieved the 10-point mark by the beginning of the final quarter over twelve hundred times prior to Thursday.

However, two of those rare single-digit games after three periods had happened just days before: He had nine entering the final quarter against Dallas on 28 November, and then had six points before the fourth quarter against Phoenix earlier in the week.

LeBron was able to keep the streak alive against the Suns. One game later, it finished – and he celebrated all the same.

“I always just make the right play. That comes naturally, regardless of outcome,” James declared. When you make the right play, the basketball gods forever giving back to me.”