“Let’s see if you can be the first.” Kevin Durant in search of a great NBA record
Nikita Biryukov March 21, 2024, 14:15 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Will KD become the highest scoring player in history?
Just at the end of February, Kevin Durant surpassed Carmelo Anthony on the list of the best scorers in the history of the National Basketball Association, and today he has taken another step again on the table of the best players, surpassing another legend of the NBA. Who did Durant promote in the list of legends and what last place among the best scorers can the forward occupy? Spoiler: he can beat Michael Jordan.
In the regular season matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers, Durant was just nine points shy of passing big center Shaquille O’Neal for eighth place on the league’s all-time scoring list. The Phoenix forward scored eight points in the first half and tied Diesel, and in the final part of the game he surpassed Shaquille, finally adding 22 points.
NBA – regular season
March 21, 2024, Thursday. 05:00 Moscow time
phoenix suns
Phoenix
Philadelphia 76ers
Philadelphia
Phoenix Suns: Allen – 32, Durant – 22, Booker – 18, O’Neal – 13, Bol – 10, Nurkic – 10, Eubanks – 4, Beal – 3, Little – 3, Thomas, Wainwright, Roddy, Gordon, Young
Philadelphia 76ers: Oubre – 18, Dautin – 12, Payne – 12, Martin – 11, Council – 10, Bamba – 9, Batum – 8, Hield – 7, Maxey – 6, Lowry – 5, Reed – 4, Harris
Durant currently has 28,610 points and continues to climb higher and higher on the list of greatest. O’Neal scored 28,596 points at the end of his career. Next on Kevin’s list should be the equally legendary Wilt Chamberlain, who stopped at 31,419 points. After such a significant achievement in Durant’s career, the one whom the Phoenix basketball player overlooked couldn’t help but speak up.
Shaquille O’Neal
four-time NBA champion, 15-time NBA All-Star
“Kevin Durant, congratulations. A well deserved achievement. I’m sure you won’t stop there. See you in… let’s see if you can be the first. I’m really happy for you. I knew this would happen. If anyone should have beaten me to it, it should have been you.”
This season, Durant averages 27.8 points, while KD has already played 61 games in the regular season, something that has not happened since the distant 2018/2019 season. If not for injuries, Kevin might have gotten close to or surpassed Chamberlain, but no one is immune to damage. Let’s think about how many points Durant can score in his career and who he can surpass in the pantheon of greats.
If KD avoids serious injuries, then he will have two or three full seasons in which he can demonstrate his current performance: about 27 points per game. At the same time, let’s take an average of 65 games per season, which gives us a total of 5265 points in three years in the league. In general, the forward is capable of scoring around 5,000 points in three seasons. With such a performance, Durant will surpass not only Chamberlain, Dirk Nowitzki, Michael Jordan, but also Kobe Bryant, who is in fourth place. What’s more, with the current level of medicine, Durant can play until he is 40 years old, as LeBron shows us, who at 39 years old continues to amaze.
KD’s Past Achievement:
Durant is the ninth greatest in the NBA! KD will soon pass another light blue
At the same time, Durant and James are completely different in terms of building a game. KD is a shooter who, late in his career, can simply become a solid role player, shooting threes from the corner or simply scoring points in whatever way suits him best. Furthermore, everyone knows that Kevin is capable of scoring points from anywhere on the court and being useful in any role.
So, if our hero avoids serious injuries, in three, and certainly in four, good seasons he will be able to reach fourth place in the list of the most productive players in history. LeBron (40,179+) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387) will be incredibly difficult for Kevin, and even Karl Malone (36,928), to catch. But even Kobe (33,643) is quite possible.
Will the NBA not let Durant get close to Kobe and Jordan?
Is the NBA depriving fans of the spectacle? The league is already addressing high-scoring issues
That’s why Shaq didn’t talk about where Durant would end up. Because we are looking at one of the best shooters in NBA history who, at 35 years old, plays such a significant role in Phoenix. KD: health and future success in the league, and basketball fans: new interesting stories that we will definitely tell you.
