NBA Record Points: The Greatest Scorers In History

Sports thrives on debate. It would be impossible to measure just how many hours society spends watching, listening to, and engaging in sports arguments.

Not to mention reading articles like this for some fuel to gas up our next hot takes. When it comes to the NBA, one of the all-time debates will always be who’s the greatest scorer ever, especially when considering NBA record points.

Not sure who you’d pick if asked to choose your scorer? It might be a good idea to start by looking at who’s scored the most points in NBA history. Here’s a breakdown of the players with the most career points in NBA history.

It should be no surprise to see LeBron in the top spot. After all, he famously broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s nearly 40-year-old all-time scoring record just last year. People may point to his career longevity, but you have to put in that time to get to this pinnacle, since Kareem played a then-NBA record 20 seasons.

LeBron did pass him in 151 fewer games and has the fourth highest points-per-game average of anyone on this list. By the time he’s done, this record may truly be unreachable.

Abdul-Jabbar passed Wilt Chamberlain back in 1984 to set the record, raising it nearly out of reach after playing five more seasons. It was once considered one of those sports records that would likely never be broken.

Back then, it was hard to fathom another player playing 20 seasons at such a high level as the Captain. When it comes to scoring, however, Kareem will always have ownership of the most unstoppable shot in basketball history, the Sky Hook.

One of the most consistent players in NBA history, the Mailman did indeed always deliver. Outside his first and final seasons, Malone averaged at least 20 points per game for an astounding 17 straight seasons.

Of course, it helps when you have the all-time leading assist man feeding you the ball at perfect spots. Still, Malone made many of the buckets himself and should find himself near the top of this list for a very long time.

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Ahh, Kobe. One of only two players on this list that played their entire careers for one team. Kobe made it to fourth all time in his 20 seasons with the Lakers, even while playing the first eight years of his career with the man currently at #9.

After Malone, there is a bit of a dropoff, but Kobe is the lead dog of this pack and deservedly so. Surely one of his proudest moments was passing the man he modeled his entire game after, His Airness below.

Not much can be said about Michael Jordan that hasn’t already been said. He’s likely the popular choice for the greatest of all time, at least for a few more years, and his legend will live on forever.

He’s known mostly for his scoring, a winner of an NBA record 10 scoring titles and the highest points per game average ever.

What makes Jordan’s presence at fifth on this list even more remarkable, is that his 15 listed seasons include one season where he played only 18 games and another with only 17. The man could get buckets. 

The only other single-team superstar in the top 10, Dallas Maverick Dirk Nowitzki rode his signature one-legged fadeaways all the way to sixth place.

He may have the lowest points per game average of anyone on this list, but Dirk will always have his legacy of revolutionizing how big men could be viewed as scoring threats, and is widely acknowledged as the greatest European player in NBA history. 

Good ol’ Mr. 100 himself. Perhaps the most dominant scorer in history, it should come as no surprise that Chamberlain remains on this list even with the lowest number of seasons played of anyone on it.

Not only did he score the mythical 100 points in one game in 1962, he averaged an all-time season high of 50.4 points per game that season. Talk about records that will never be broken. 

The only other active player on this list besides James, Kevin Durant will go down as one of the smoothest scorers of all time. While injuries have affected his career as of late, the 35-year-old, 6’11” dynamo can do one thing arguably better than anybody ever.

Put the ball in the basket from anywhere. Impossible to guard, his average dipped a little to 27.1 last year, but with a few more years of good health, KD could easily surpass Bryant for fourth on this list. 

Perhaps the closest thing the NBA has seen to Wilt Chamberlain, the Big Aristotle was one of the most dominating forces in NBA history. While Shaq’s last few years were forgettable, he had a 10-year run starting in the mid-90’s that could rival nearly anybody’s.

He finished top-five in the MVP voting seven times, winning once, and averaged a cold 27.9 points per game. Just unstoppable in the paint.

The recently retired Carmelo Anthony was the last player besides LeBron James still active from the 2003 NBA Draft. In his 19 seasons, Melo climbed his way to 10th on this list, no easy feat.

Even as his career dwindled down, he was still a formidable scoring threat and continued averaging double-digits per game into retirement, passing Elvin Hayes for 10th all time in his next-to-last season.