Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns needed 37 points to overtake Hakeem Olajuwon on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, which he did today against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Durant is currently ranked 12th on the list, surpassing Olajuwon’s previous high of 26,946 points. Durant had 26,910 points before tonight.
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gray/IMZIH7ZMOZK43MQVH7L4O4OSPU.jpg)
With 1:30 left in the game, he overcame Olajuwon on a and-one to tie the score at 91-91.
According to the Arizona Republic’s Duane Rankin, Durant is the only player in the top 15 to have played fewer than 1,000 games (987) while also being one of two players in the top 25 to have played fewer than 1,000 games (Jerry West has 932).
Durant was asked to bear the weight for Phoenix in the second game of their two-game road trip in the absence of Bradley Beal and Devin Booker. Durant responded in spectacular fashion tonight after scoring 18 points in a fairly lackluster performance.
Durant stepped it up a notch in the third quarter, scoring 15 points after ending with 15 at halftime.
Elvin Hayes (27,313) and Moses Malone (27,409) come next before Durant, widely regarded as one of the best scorers in league history, can officially enter the top 10.
Before the regular season, NBA.com’s Jeff Case predicted Durant would reach that mark:
“This season, Durant has a good chance of breaking into the top ten all-time scorers.” “To pass No. 12 Hakeem Olajuwon (26,946), Durant needs 55 points, 422 points to pass No. 11 Elvin Hayes (27,313), and 518 points to pass No. 10 Moses Malone (27,409),” Case added.
“Last season, Durant scored 1,366 points in 47 games, roughly matching his previous season (1,643 points in 55 games in ’21-22). If Durant scores around 1,600 points this season, he’ll pass Carmelo Anthony (28,289) for ninth place on the all-time scoring record. A healthy season with 2,000 or more points would be more than enough for him to pass Shaquille O’Neal (28,596) for eighth place. Finally, Durant needs 3,108 points to join the ranks of the 30,000-point club.”
On Saturday, Oct. 28, the Suns will welcome the Utah Jazz in their home opening.