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Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant knocked down two free throws with 1:11 left in the third quarter during Tuesday’s 119-112 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, becoming the eighth player in NBA history to reach 30,000 career points.
Durant started slow with just two points in the opening quarter but caught fire in the second, scoring 17 on an efficient 7-of-8 shooting to put himself within reach of the milestone. After the third quarter, the Suns honored him, and the Phoenix crowd erupted in a loud ovation to celebrate his historic achievement.
“It’s a true honor to be in the same category as those players who helped shape the game, push the game forward. That’s always been my goal to get the most out of myself everyday. To get the most out of my career. To be mentioned with those guys means I’m doing something right for myself,” said Durant in his post game interview.
Kevin Durant on joining LeBron, Kareem, Malone, Kobe, MJ, Dirk & Wilt with 30,000 points: "It’s a true honor to be in the same category as those players who helped shape the game, push the game forward…To be mentioned with those guys means I’m doing something right for myself" pic.twitter.com/z1bi6hY3Jz
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) February 12, 2025
The 36-year-old, recently selected for his 15th All-Star appearance, now joins LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki, and Wilt Chamberlain in the exclusive 30,000-point club. Julius Erving also reached the milestone when factoring in his combined NBA and ABA points.
The Suns star also showed appreciation to the people that supported him saying, “I feel like all the people that helped me throughout this journey. I always talk about them and how much they mean to me. How much they impacted me and helped me get to this point. Just grateful to all my teammates, coaches, family, friends that supported me and invested in me as a basketball player, so it means a lot.”
Kevin Durant's journey to 30,000 career points
Durant, a four-time NBA scoring champion, continues to rank among the league's top scorers in his 17th season. Averaging roughly 27 points per game on 52% shooting, he remains a dominant offensive force. He tallied 17,566 points across nine seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder, who were still the Seattle SuperSonics during his rookie year in 2007-08. His career totals also include 5,374 points with the Golden State Warriors, 3,744 with the Brooklyn Nets, and 3,324 with the Phoenix Suns.
If Durant hadn't missed the entire 2019-20 season recovering from an Achilles rupture or been limited to 35 games in 2020-21 and 47 games in 2022-23, he would likely already rank higher on the all-time scoring list, potentially positioning himself for a top-three spot behind LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Memphis guard Ja Morant handed Durant the game ball after the final buzzer and praised him during his postgame interview on TNT. Morant acknowledged Durant's rare achievement stating, “He's one of the greats. Everybody don't get 30K in this league. So, hats off to him. And I hope he keeps going. We want to see him out here.”
Durant, a 15-time All-Star, returned from a three-game absence due to a sprained left ankle and delivered a strong performance, finishing with 34 points on 12-of-18 shooting in the loss.
