The 2021-22 season is just weeks away, with dozens of exciting (and potentially frustrating) storylines on and off the court for hoops fans to consume. The upcoming season will be a thrilling one in particular for basketball historians, as various all-time records could potentially be broken by some of the league's active legends. Steph Curry can finally fullfill his destiny, LeBron James can pass up his body prototype and Chris Paul can cement his legacy as a Point God. Monumental stuff!

Steph Curry becomes the all-time leader in three-pointers made

Assuming he stayed healthy, this has essentially been a forgone conclusion since his first MVP season back in 2015. For his career, Curry averages 3.7 made threes per game, the highest rate in NBA history with only Damian Lillard joining him as players who make more than three threes a game for their careers. At this point, it's the least controversial take in NBA history, but it's worth stating out of respect: Curry is the greatest shooter to ever touch a basketball. Sure, percentage-wise, he's currently only no. 7 all-time in three-point efficiency at 43.3%, but let's look at who's ahead of him: his coach Steve Kerr, his brother Seth Curry, Hubert Davis, Joe Harris, Drazen Petrovic and Jason Kapono. None of them come close to Steph's attempt rate, and none of them are pulling up off the dribble from 35+ feet out. His ability to create space for himself on or off the ball, combined with his lightning-quick release, make him one of the most unguardable players in league history, and he's showing no signs of slowing down.

Ray Allen currently sits as the all-time leader in three-pointers made at 2,973, with Curry hot on his heels at 2,832. With just 142 to go, he should pass Jesus Shuttlesworth around the 39-game mark of the season if he's knocking shots down at his career rate of 3.7 made threes a game. However, if he remains as unstoppable as he was last season and hits five threes a game (an absolutely absurd number that he's achieved three times in his career), he could take his crown in around 29 games. What's game no. 29 on the Warriors' calendar? Dec. 17 in Boston to play the Celtics, the team for whom Ray Allen was playing when he passed up Reggie Miller for the no. 1 spot on the list back in 2011. Another fun day for Curry to take the record in front of a massive viewing audience would be the Warriors' Christmas Day game against the Phoenix Suns.

LeBron James passes moves into second place on the all-time leading scorers' list

James already passed Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant on this list, sparking myriad greatest-of-all-time debates and initiating shouting matches on various talking-head shows. This upcoming milestone will be less controversial, as no one would ever argue that Karl Malone is a better basketball player than LeBron James. Even so, Malone had historically great longevity, winning his second MVP just prior to his 36th birthday and averaged 20 points per game while pushing age 40. James passing him up for the no. 2 spot on the all-time list is a testiment to his own longevity and iron-man durability.

Malone, whose body-builder frame has always been the comp for James (“he's Magic Johnson in Karl Malone's body”) sits at 36,298 points, with James fast-approaching in his rearview mirror at 35,367. 1562 points is all that stands between James and the no. 2 spot. Let's assume he won't reach his career average of 27 points per game this upcoming season given his advanced age and surrounding talent (Russell Westbrook might be taking the ball out of James' hands quite a bit). If he gives the lakers 24 points per game, he should pass up The Mailman around the 65-game mark. This lands on an away-game against the Houston Rockets, which is fine, but if James can either push to the 58-game mark (the Lakers play Malone's Utah Jazz at Staples Center) or hold off until the 76-game mark (the Lakers travel to Utah), it would be quite poetic. Whenever James gets to that magic number, it's sure to be a spectacle given the Lakers' pedigree.

Will James stick around long enough to reach Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's all-time record of 38,387 points? He could do it as early as next season if he remains healthy and continues to score 20+ points per game. If he makes it, that accomplishment would be quite the ammunition for those arguing that he's the greatest player ever.

Chris Paul jumps two players, including a Hall-of-Famer, on the all-time assist list

Chris Paul's NBA Finals appearance last season did wonders for his legacy. For most of his career, he'd never even reached the Conference Finals, and many doubters used this as an example of why they think he's a level below the all-time greats. Well, he made the Conference Finals with the Houston Rockets in 2018 (and could've possibly beaten the Golden State Warriors and made the Finals if he didn't get hurt), and helped his Suns to the Finals in 2021, acting as the veteran leader of an up-and-coming squad that had done relatively nothing before he arrived there.

Still, doubters remain, but there's nothing like an all-time accolade to bump up a player's historic reputation a bit. Paul currently sits fifth all-time at 10,275 career assists, just 59 behind no. 4 Mark Jackson (10,334) and 60 behind no. 3 Steve Nash (10,335). Nash is one of the greatest point guards of all-time, and Mark Jackson was no slouch himself. Similar to James, Paul has already jumped the all-time best in this catagory by passing up Magic Johnson, but continuing to climb the ladder will only help to cement his legacy.

Paul averaged 8.9 assists per game last year for Phoenix, just shy of his career average of 9.4. Let's project his 2021-22 average down to eight even, factoring in Devin Booker's continuing development as a playmaker. Paul is going to pass up Nash early on if this is the case, around game no. 7 or 8 of the season. How about against his former team, Rockets, who traded Paul away for Russell Westbrook in a deal that Houston likely regrets? Or maybe a showdown with the Atlanta Hawks, led by point guard Trae Young, who may very well climb towards the top of this list himself if he follows his current trajectory?

In all likelihood, Paul will never be able to become the all-time assist leader. The 5,531-assist gap between him and Jazz legend John Stockton is just too sizable given that Paul is already 36 with a history of injuries. He could, however, pass up Jason Kidd for the Silver Medal spot if he were to play three more seasons at around his current rate. While health is a concern, Paul's on-court game has aged gracefully in the modern NBA, and there's no reason he couldn't continue to be effective as he approaches age 40.