Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant further etched his name in the history of the NBA as he moved past former Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers center Shaquille O’Neal on the league’s all-time scoring list on Wednesday.
The 35-year-old scored 22 points in the Suns’ win over the Philadelphia 76ers at Phoenix’s Footprint Center to take his career total to 28,610 career points in 1,048 games.
This season, Durant, playing in his first full campaign for the Suns, has surpassed four other NBA legends on the all-time scoring list, including Hakeem Olajuwon, Elvin Hayes, Moses Malone, and New York City Basketball Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony.
With this incredible achievement, Afrosport takes a look at the other players ahead of Durant on the list of the NBA’s potent scorers.
7. Wilt Chamberlain – 31,419
The two-time NBA champion and Hall of Famer sits seventh on the league’s all-time scoring list with 31,419 career points.
He currently has 2,809 points more than Durant, who has played three more games than Chamberlain (1,045). At his current pace, it will likely take Durant more than a season to surpass the 76ers and Lakers.
6. Dirk Nowitzki – 31,560
Nowitzki, who enjoyed a 21-year-long career with the Dallas Mavericks, winning the franchise’s first and only NBA title, ended his career in the league with 31,560 points.
Arguably the greatest European basketball player of all time, the 14-time All-Star currently takes the sixth spot on the NBA’s all-time scoring list and is 2,950 points ahead of Durant.
5. Michael Jordan – 32,292
Arguably the best man to have ever played the game of basketball, Jordan accrued 32,292 points across his 15-year playing career in the NBA, which included two spells with the Chicago Bulls and a two-year period with the Washington Wizards.
Durant is 3,682 points off the six-time NBA champion and Finals MVP and will need to over two seasons at this current scoring pace to overtake Jordan, who is revered for changing the game of basketball.
4. Kobe Bryant – 33,643
The late Bryant, who played 20 years for the Lakers, scored 33,643 career points to occupy the fourth spot in the NBA’s scoring ranking.
The five-time champion and Hall of Famer enjoys a 5,033-point gap over Durant, who needs about three seasons of playing healthy basketball to overcome this deficit and overtake one of the league’s iconic figures.
3. Karl Malone – 36,928
Two-time NBA MVP Malone, who suited up for 1,476 games during his playing career, managed 36,928 points to take up the third spot on the scoring ladder.
The league’s all-time leader in regular season games started as well as free throws made and attempted, Malone, is 8,318 points off Durant.
2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 38,387
Abdul-Jabbar held the league’s scoring record for 39 years before he was overtaken by LeBron James in 2023. ‘The Captain’, as he was called during his ball-playing days, settled for 38,387 career points, a number that seemed insurmountable for a very long time.
At 35 already and with his current scoring numbers, Durant will need to play into his 40s to have a chance of overtaking the 9,777-point deficit between him and Abdul-Jabbar.
1. LeBron James – 40,179
The NBA’s leader in career points total, James, who became the first player in league history to reach the 40,000-mark on Saturday, March 2, has garnered 40,179 points in a continuing career.
The 39-year-old, who has previously played for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat and currently wears the purple and gold of the Lakers, is in his 21st season in the NBA, and it looks like he won’t be slowing down anytime soon.
James has scored 1,527 points this season over 60 games played, and as his lead at the top increases, his record number looks impossible to surmount.
