Obviously, this is a New Jersey Nets blog, however, the NAS crew absolutely love the NBA in general. So, every week, Sebastian, Mark, Devin, and myself will answer questions regarding the L.
1. Recently, Andre Iguodala said that Kevin Durant will eventually break Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record. Of course it’s possible, but how likely will it happen? Will he or won’t he?
Mark: Very unlikely. Kareem played in over 1550 games in his career. You just don’t see that kind of longevity in the NBA anymore. If you consider maintaining 24 ppg over that period of time, I just can’t see anyone currently playing in the NBA approaching those numbers.
Devin: It’s not only possible, barring injury, it may actually be likely. Let’s look at the numbers. Durantula has 5,967 points in three NBA seasons so far, with a breakout year of 2,472 this past year. Let’s say he scores about 2,200 a year (around 27-28 points per game) for the next 10 years (until he’s 31), and then about 1,800 a year (about 22-23 points per game) for six more (until he’s 37). I realize the numbers will fluctuate, just an estimate. If that’s his level of production, by age 37 he would have 38,767 points – breaking Kareem’s record. A lot of things would have to go right, and you can never predict when a guy’s body might break down. That being said Durant hasn’t even been legal for a year yet and is already the most special offensive talent in the NBA. I’m certainly excited to see his career unfold.
DV: My gut reaction is “aw, HELL no!” Of course if Durant actually does break Kareem’s record, it’ll be so far into the future no one will ever remember my negative outcry. And, after thinking about it some more, my answer is still a nay to this scenario. There are too many factors here – health being the main one. It’s obviously impossible to predict one’s durability, although Durant should have the skills to score tons, no one can say he’ll be able to play the 16+ seasons it’ll take for Durant to be the NBA’s all-time points leader.
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