Kevin Durant Moves Past Michael Jordan For Fifth On NBA Scoring List

Kevin Durant scored 27 points to lead his Houston Rockets past the Miami Heat, 123-122. In the process, Durant moved to fifth on the career scoring list, passing arguably the best player in NBA history, Michael Jordan. “I’ve got more to go,” Durant told reporters postgame with a smile. “It is pretty sweet to be in the same category as the greats.”

Durant is averaging 25.7 points this season and doesn’t look like a star whose beaming light is anywhere close to fading to dark. So, when he said, “I’ve got more to go,” it is a proclamation that should be taken seriously. At 32,294 points (and counting), KD is well within range of passing the player who is fourth on the esteemed list, Kobe Bryant.

Kevin Durant’s Scoring Career By the Numbers

Since being drafted No. 1 overall in the 2008 NBA Draft, Durant has cemented himself as one of the most efficient scorers in NBA history. Very few have been able to match or come close to his unique blend of length (6 feet 11 inches) and pure shooting ability. In addition to his career points total, KD has proven he is among the best of his peers in a variety of ways. He has led the league in total points in a season five times, which only trails Jordan (11 times) and Wilt Chamberlain (seven).

In addition, Durant has led in points per game four times (Jordan – 10 times, Wilt – seven) and is one of nine players to lead the league in points per game in three consecutive seasons. Perhaps the most dangerous aspect of his game, especially as it relates to his size, is KD’s three-point shooting.

A career 39% shooter from beyond the arc, the 2013-14 league MVP has shot at least 40% from three nine times in his career. That is the same number of times as Klay Thompson and is one more than what Ray Allen had in his career. Both are in the top 5 all-time for made threes.

Durant is 10th on the same list and is the tallest among the top 10. Lastly, his prowess from the charity stripe has to be noted. Durant is an 88% free throw shooter who has reached the 90% mark four times in his 18 seasons played. This is remarkable when considering that those at his height and size are readily expected to shoot in the 70% range and even lower.

He was even the league leader in FT percentage during the 2012-13 season (90.5%) and has been tops in FT attempts twice in his career. Both seasons were the only two in which Durant averaged at least 30 points in a season.

What Is Next For Kevin Durant?

Objectively speaking, fans have not seen a player that can match the 16-time All-Star’s combination of skills and size. A model of efficiency throughout his career, KD has a great chance to climb even more on the scoring list. At the time of publication, he is 1,350 points from passing Bryant’s total and is only 6,094 points from taking the mantle of 2nd on the list.

If Durant were able to continue to score 1,723 points (his total so far this season), we should expect Durant to move to second by the 2029-30 season. If LeBron James is retired by that time, then KD could become the new leading scorer in NBA history.