Who has the most turnovers in NBA history?
On most occasions, an NBA star will be more than happy to have his name associated with a record. However, there are several negative statistics that players want to keep away from as well. LeBron James is part of several league all-time lists, including the most turnovers. But it is important to keep in mind that when it comes to turnovers in the NBA, there are two ways to look at the situation.
While no player wants to have high turnovers, all-time statistics often result from longevity and a high usage rate. Players with elite playmaking skills will inadvertently have a high number of turnovers. In a nutshell, players who have maintained a high usage rate in the NBA are more likely to have more turnovers.
Keeping that in mind, we look at the NBA players who have the highest number of turnovers in the league's history.
LeBron James is a four-time NBA champion and widely considered one of the greatest players of all time. 'King James' has also registered the most turnovers in league history (4592).
LeBron James broke the record during the LA Lakers' match against the Memphis Grizzlies in February 2021. With his fourth turnover of the match, LeBron registered his 4,525th career turnover, breaking Utah Jazz legend Karl Malone's record of 4,524.
Known for his all-around ability as a basketball player, LeBron James is a victim of his sheer volume. The forward has always been an initiating playmaker for his team and has an extremely high usage rate.
Other NBA players on the all-time turnovers list
Regardless of media bias, LeBron James will go down as one of the greatest players ever, with his high number of turnovers only due to his overall production on the basketball court.
Karl Malone, as already mentioned, finished his career with a total of 4524 turnovers and is second on the list.
The rest of the top-5 list is rounded up by Moses Malone, John Stockton and late LA Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
Among current NBA stars, only Russell Westbrook (9th) features in the top-10. He is another player known for his high usage rate. Westbrook has registered 3893 turnovers in his career and could as well finish in the top-3 by the time he retires. James and Westbrook are currently involved in the play-in tournament and hope to lead their teams to the playoffs.