Lakers' LeBron James Breaks Karl Malone's NBA Record for Most Career Turnovers

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James set an NBA record in Friday's 115-105 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, although it likely isn't one he celebrated.

With five turnovers in the game, James surpassed Utah Jazz legend for first on the all-time NBA list with 4,526. Malone is now second with 4,524.

While no player revels in turning the ball over, LeBron should feel no shame in being No. 1 on the list considering the who's who of NBA legends around him. Each of the top 12 players in career turnovers are either current or future Hall of Famers.

Following James and Malone are John Stockton, Kobe Bryant, Jason Kidd, Moses Malone, Isiah Thomas, Hakeem Olajuwon, Russell Westbrook, Patrick Ewing, Paul Pierce and Magic Johnson.

Having that many turnovers means a player handles the ball a lot and has longevity, and both of those are unquestionably true for James. The 36-year-old is in the midst of his 18th NBA season and playing as well as ever with averages of 25.6 points, 7.9 assists and 7.9 rebounds per game.

James is a 16-time All-Star, four-time NBA MVP, four-time NBA Finals MVP and four-time NBA champion, including last season when he led the Lakers to their first title since 2010.

For every negative stat that James has on his resume, there are many more positive ones, including the fact that he ranks third in NBA history in points, third in field goals made and eighth in assists.

A strong case can be made for James being the greatest player in NBA history, and being the all-time leader in turnovers does little to hurt his claim for that distinction.

Considering how well James is still playing and the fact that his NBA career is likely far from over, LeBron figures to put plenty of distance between himself and Malone on the all-time turnovers list in the coming years.