James Harden became the 10th-leading scorer in NBA history during the Clippers’ recent road trip, passing Carmelo Anthony during a 34-point performance against the Timberwolves.
The three-time NBA scoring champion is one of the best bucket-getters the sport has seen, and at 36, he is still putting the ball in the hoop at an elite rate. His 26.6 points per game this season rank 12th in the league, and are the most he has averaged since 2020.
“It is unexplainable what he can do. He has the ability to score at all three levels, is an elite shooter, and you never know what he is going to do next,” said Clippers guard Kobe Sanders.
Harden’s game is built on skill and fundamentals as opposed to speed and explosiveness, which has always made him a candidate to continue to play at this level deep into his career. The top 3 are nearly impossible to catch, but if Harden were to play for another three healthy seasons, averaging around 20 points, he would have a solid chance to pass Michael Jordan (currently 5th all-time).
That might be a lot to ask, but LeBron James just averaged 24.4 points in a season while turning 40. Harden loves to hoop, and he feels like the kind of player who will keep lacing it up for as long as possible.
“He always wants to play. He is one guy who never misses games; he always wants to be on the court to hoop. Guys work hard to be great, and if someone is a great player, they probably work hard, and now I have seen it in person and see what he does every single day,” said his head coach, Ty Lue.
Something that will work against him if he seeks to finish his career inside the top 5 is that one of the players ahead of him is Kevin Durant, who is also still one of the top scorers in the NBA. Durant is nearly 3,000 points ahead of Harden.
The most realistic outcome if he keeps playing like this would be passing Jordan and finishing behind Durant, which would place Harden 6th all-time when it is all said and done. He would potentially be able to catch Kobe Bryant (4th all-time) with four to five more seasons, but that could be a stretch considering his age.
While it might not be the top thing on Harden’s mind as he still seeks the ultimate prize of an NBA championship, moving up the scoring list is likely something he will be tracking for the rest of his career, and when he is right, he can still put up points with the best of them.
“He has extreme confidence. You can tell he has that mindset where he knows the next one is going in, and when he gets hot, there is no stopping him,” said Kawhi Leonard.
The ability to score points is not yet fading for Harden, and moving inside the top 10 could just be the beginning. He is just over 200 points away from passing Shaquille O’Neal, which he will do this season. Wilt Chamberlain and Dirk Nowitzki would become the next targets, but they are still over 3,000 points ahead.
Benjamin Verbrugge is a reporter for News4usonline who studied journalism at CSU Dominguez Hills. “Sports have brought me much joy throughout my life, and I want to give a little back to something that has meant so much to me.” Email Benjamin at benverbrugge8@gmail.com.
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