5 records to watch out for in 2023-24 season; featuring LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Nikola Jokic
LeBron James reached a very important milestone in his career last season by surpassing the great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the league's all-time scoring record.
Every single year, the NBA provides its fans with moments that are worth waiting for and watching. From fast-paced action on the court to intense off-court drama, the league has provided fans with something to look forward to and the 2023-24 season should be no different.
Jokic's triple-double record, LeBron James' points total, and three other things to look out for next season
The 77th NBA season will soon be upon us and as usual, there are plenty of things that are worth anticipating. Several players, including LeBron James once again, are on the cusp of securing momentous records that will forever be remembered in the league's history books.
With that being said, here are five records that fans should watch out for.
#1 Kevin Durant breaking into the top 10 all-time scorers list
Kevin Durant currently has 26,892 career points which is good enough for the 13th spot in the all-time scorers list. This coming season, he is almost guaranteed to get past NBA legends Hakeem Olajuwon, Elvin Hayes, and Moses Malone to become number 10 on that list.
Hakeem Olajuwon is number 12 with 26,946, Hayes has 27,313, and Malone has 27,409. KD only needs to score 518 points to surpass all three players.
#2 Russell Westbrook continuing to climb the all-time triple-double list
Russell Westbrook rewrote the history books in the 2016-17 season when he became the only other player to average a triple-double in a season after Oscar Robertson in 1961-62. Overall, Westbrook has averaged a triple-double in four different seasons and was able to do so in three consecutive years from 2016 to 2019.
Right now, he is the record holder for career triple-doubles and is only two shy of reaching the 200 mark. The league will certainly be waiting if he can reach that number in this upcoming campaign.
#3 Nikola Jokic surpassing LeBron James and Jason Kidd in the all-time triple-double list
Nikola Jokic just continues to collect accolades left and right. Just last season, he won his first NBA Title and was awarded his first Finals MVP trophy. Overall, he has been doing things that are unprecedented for an NBA Center.
Jokic's talents have set him apart from other big men in the league as he has already recorded 105 regular-season triple-doubles for his career. Currently, he is only three away from surpassing LeBron James and Jason Kidd who are tied at 107. Jokic could certainly do this very early in the 2023-24 season.
#4 James Harden surpassing Ray Allen in the all-time three-pointers made list
There is a lot of drama surrounding James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers right now due to The Beard's trade request. Fans are eagerly anticipating where Harden could be playing next.
However, fans should also look out for James Harden becoming number two in career three-pointers. Currently, Harden has 2,754 threes and Ray Allen has 2,973. Making over 200 threes in a single season is certainly possible for someone with James Harden's talents and only time will tell if he can climb higher in the record books.
#5 LeBron James scoring 40,000 career points
LeBron James already made history by surpassing Kareem on the all-time scoring list. However, he can further build on his legacy by becoming the first player to reach the 40,000-point mark in NBA history.
Currently, LeBron James has 38,652 career points. He is only 1,348 points away from reaching 40,000. Last season, LeBron scored 1,590 points in just 55 games. If he has the same pace this season, he will certainly reach this milestone.
Also read: “This ni**a DG all joggin’ and s**t”: LeBron James once emulated ‘Michael Jordan being a terror in practice energy’ with Danny Green.