Kevin Durant scribed his name into NBA history Tuesday night, becoming just the eighth player to reach 30,000 career points.
The 36-year-old Phoenix Suns star hit the milestone with a free throw late in the third quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies.
A 15-time All-Star, Durant joins an elite group that includes LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki and Wilt Chamberlain. Julius Erving also surpassed the mark when combining his points from the NBA and ABA.
"It's a true honor to be in the same category as those players who helped shape the game and pushed the game forward," Durant said. "That's always been my goal – to get the most out of myself every day, get the most out of my career. To be mentioned with those guys, I must be doing something right."
Durant is a four-time NBA scoring champion and remains one of the league’s elite shot-makers in his 17th season. He’s averaging about 27 points per game while shooting 52% from the field.
"It's special for everyone who's around him every day," Suns coach Mike Budenholzer said. "I think we're amazed by him – the way he comes to work, the time he puts in, the attention to detail, the effort. It's translated to 30,000 points. He's just a special player and a special human being."
Durant scored 17,566 points over his first nine seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, who were the Seattle SuperSonics during his rookie year in 2007-08. He also played for the Golden State Warriors (5,374 points), Brooklyn Nets (3,744) and the Suns (3,324).
Durant finished with 34 points on 12-of-18 shooting in the Suns' 119-112 loss.
