Which NBA player has the best chance to hit 10,000+ career assists in the 2021-22 NBA season?
Passing in the NBA has grown beyond tossing the ball to the next man. A lot of precision is involved in giving your teammate a decent shot at converting.
While making assists is not an entirely easy task, the likes of Chris Paul have done so at an incredibly high rate, providing over 10,000 assists in their careers.
It takes a special kind of player to set up a teammate to score in the NBA, and CP3 is one of them. He is the only active player in the top five on the all-time assist leaderboard (with 10,275 assists).
Paul has a good chance at moving further up the list seeing as he has just signed a four-year deal with the Phoenix Suns.
Congrats to @CP3 of the @Suns for becoming the 6th player in NBA history to reach 10,000 ASSISTS! https://t.co/r9nQwwfHcT
Regardless, beating John Stockton as the all-time assist leader might not be achievable. Although retired, his assist tally stands at 15,806.
Who could hit the 10,000 assists mark in the 2021-22 NBA season?
LeBron James has showcased his playmaking ability on multiple occasions in the league and has the best chance of joining the elite club of players with 10,000+ assists. He is currently ranked 8th on the all-time assists leaderboard (9,696) but will undoubtedly hit the 10,000 mark in the upcoming season.
LBJ is 3,000 points away from surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA's all-time leading scorer, but the Ohio native has opted to focus more on his assist tally.
Despite having a traditional point guard on the team, LeBron James has been the primary facilitator for the LA Lakers in the past two seasons.
👑 Year 18 dimes 👑
@KingJames’ TOP-10 assists from the 2020-21 season! #NBAAssistWeek https://t.co/RN7sU4PKMV
The Lakers acquired Russell Westbrook in the offseason, which might make things a bit tricky heading into the 2021-22 NBA season. Both players like to have the ball in their hands and control proceedings. This means that someone might have to give up or at least have fewer touches on every offensive possession.
It will be intriguing to see how both players will combine. Nonetheless, recording 304 assists in the 82-game season will not be a tall task for LeBron James.
King James had the lowest assists total last season after playing in only 45 matches. Even so, he recorded 350 assists, the worst of his career. Seeing as he needs just a little over 300 assists and with the caliber of scorers on the Lakers team, reaching the 10,000-assist mark is feasible.
If achieved, LeBron James would be the seventh player in NBA history to reach 10,000 assists. Westbrook could join in on the party in a few years as he currently has 8,061 assists. If he continues adding to his triple-double tally, perhaps he could join the club in the next three years at the earliest.