Listing the 3 players with the most seasons leading the NBA in total points
The battle for the 2021-22 NBA scoring title has been thrilling between current leader LeBron James, Joel Embiid, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. The LA Lakers superstar currently leads the standings with an average of 30.1 (the second-best of his career) in his 19th NBA season, while the Philadelphia 76ers' center and the Milwaukee Bucks player follow with 29.9 and 29.7, respectively.
How would that fight look if we took into consideration the total of points scored instead? Perhaps it would look totally different.
The leader in total points scored in the 2021-22 NBA season is currently Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum with 1923 points. Until the 1968-69 NBA season, the scoring leader was the player with the most points scored, regardless of per-game average (and that was also the case in terms of assists and rebounds).
Tatum ranks eighth in terms of points per game (27.1) this year, but he's played 71 games, while James (55), Embiid (61) and Antetokounmpo (61) have missed more playing time.
Regardless, the current rules are the same for everyone, but it's definitely interesting to see that James, Embiid and Antetokounmpo are not in the top 3 in terms of total points, but are clearly ahead in terms of PPG.
However, in this article we want to look at the total points scored, and we will give you the three players who have the most seasons leading the league in total points.
Without further ado, let us take a look.
#3 Kevin Durant - 5
Kevin Durant is easily recognized as one of the greatest scorers in NBA history due to his high number of points but mainly due to the efficiency he's able to display while playing on offense.
Throughout his NBA career (since the 2007-08 season), Durant has won four scoring titles, which ranks third all-time (tied with George Gervin and Allen Iverson), only surpassed by Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain.
In terms of total points, the 12-time All-Star has led the league five times and he did it consecutively between the 2009-10 and 2013-14 campaigns. He also won his four scoring titles in that stretch, with only Carmelo Anthony managing to beat him in that department in the 2012-13 campaign.
#2 Wilt Chamberlain - 7
Wilt Chamberlain owns most of the scoring records in NBA history, but he is second on this list. Wilt put up incredible scoring records in his career, such as the famous 100-point game against the New York Knicks on March 2nd, 1962, or averaging 50.4 points per game for an entire campaign (1961-62).
Chamberlain won the scoring title in each of his first seven years in the league, and he even became the first rookie to win the NBA MVP award, in the 1959-60 campaign.
Each of his seven scoring titles (a record at the time of his retirement) came during an era where totals were more important than the average per match, which puts him second on this list with seven years leading the league in total points scored.
Of course, not only was Chamberlain leading the league in that department, he was setting unbreakable records. In the 1961-62 campaign, he put up the most points ever in a single season, with a whopping 4029. He also had two other seasons with more than 3000 points, a feat that only one other player managed to achieve (Michael Jordan in the 1986-87 campaign).
#1 Michael Jordan - 11
Michael Jordan owns the record for most scoring titles won in NBA history with 10, while he also posted the highest career average of points per game in league history, with 30.1 per night (among players with at least 400 games played).
Moreover, Jordan led the NBA in total points 11 times throughout his illustrious career (between 1984 and 2003). The only year in which Jordan led the league in total points but didn't win the scoring title came in his rookie season, when Bernard King (New York Knicks) and Larry Bird (Boston Celtics) finished ahead of him in terms of points per game.
Jordan won the scoring title in seven consecutive seasons between the 1986-87 and 1992-93 campaigns. The streak was halted by his first retirement in 1993, but he then won the scoring title back in the next three full seasons he participated in, from the 1995-96 season to the 1997-98 campaign.
Jordan also had the most seasons leading the league in field goals made, with 10.