"Jordan was never a part of the 50/40/90 club" - Kendrick Perkins makes a case for Kevin Durant being the GOAT scorer over Michael Jordan
Kevin Durant has consistently positioned himself as one of the best shooters in the history of the league. His midrange shots are almost more certain to go in than they are to stay out. His style of play is admirable but mostly unguardable, as the 12-time All-Star is one of the best ball handlers the league has seen.
With James surpassing Karl Malone for second place in career scoring, the greatest scorer of all-time conversation is being revisited. While this will always be debatable, fans and media analysts have preferences. The names include LBJ, Michael Jordan and Durant.
Jordan has the NBA's best all-time scoring average (30.12 points per game). However, he retired twice, missing almost five full seasons, and is fifth in career scoring at 32,292 points.
Jordan led the league in scoring 10 times, all during his 13 seasons with the Chicago Bulls. Keep in mind, though, that he played only 18 games in 1985-86 because of a broken foot and 17 games in 1994-95 after unretiring.
James is second all-time in scoring, with 36,985 points, and is on pace to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's mark of 38,387 next season. Through Monday night's 38-point outburst in a win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, he is fifth all-time in scoring at an average of 27.115 ppg. James led the league in scoring once. He is in his 19th season.
Durant, who is in his 13th season, has 25,176 points (22nd). He's on pace to be in the top 10 within the next season or so. Including his 37 points Monday night in a win over the Utah Jazz, his scoring average is 27.139 ppg (fourth).
On ESPN's "First Take," Stephen A. Smith said Jordan stands a better chance in that conversation than Durant. perkins" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">Kendrick Perkins disagreed, saying MJ was never a member of the 50/40/90 group, hinging his argument about his inability to shoot 3-pointers.
"Jordan was never part of the 50/40/90 club, because he did not shoot the trey ball like that," Perkins said.
Is Kevin Durant the greatest scorer of all-time?
Kendrick Perkins, like others, strongly believes that KD is the greatest scorer of all-time. He said the Brooklyn Nets forward is flawless on offense. He said Durant’s unique value is being good with his "jumpshot and his efficiency."
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The former NBA player postulated that Durantula could garner 10 to 11 scoring titles if he wanted to. He reiterated that while he thinks KD is the best scorer of all-time, LeBron James is in the top five.
"Lebron James is in the top five, but when I go with the greatest scorer of all-time, I'm going with Kevin Durant." Perkins said. "And here's why. When you talk about a guy that has zero flaws offensively, Kevin Durant has everything and more on his offensive arsenal. Here's the difference between KD and everybody else: his jumpshot and his efficiency. ... If Kevin Durant really wanted to, he could have 10 to about 11 scoring titles."