LeBron James. That's the name. If you're looking for the all time scoring leader NBA, you’ve likely seen his face plastered across every sports highlight for the last two decades. But honestly, just knowing he’s at the top doesn't tell the whole story. It’s not just about a massive number on a screen; it’s about the fact that he actually did it. He passed Kareem. He blew past Malone. Now, in early 2026, he’s basically playing in a league of his own.
Most people think the record was always destined to be his. It wasn't. For nearly forty years, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's 38,387 points looked like a mountain nobody could climb. Michael Jordan didn't reach it. Kobe Bryant, as relentless as he was, fell short. Even Karl Malone, the "Mailman" who seemingly never missed a day of work, couldn't quite deliver enough to catch the Captain.
The Current State of the Leaderboard
As of January 2026, the gap between LeBron and the rest of the world has become almost comical. He isn't just the leader; he’s the first human to ever cross the 50,000 career points threshold when you factor in both the regular season and the playoffs.
If you're strictly looking at regular-season stats—which is how the official record is traditionally measured—the numbers are staggering.
- LeBron James: 42,683+ points (and still counting)
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 38,387 points
- Karl Malone: 36,928 points
- Kobe Bryant: 33,643 points
- Michael Jordan: 32,292 points
Look at that jump. LeBron has a lead of over 4,000 points on second place. To put that in perspective, a player would need to average 25 points per game and play every single game for two straight seasons just to cover the distance between first and second. It's wild.
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Why the "All Time" Title is kida Complicated
People love to argue. That's basically 90% of sports fandom. When we talk about the all time scoring leader NBA, some old-school purists still want to talk about "scoring purity."
They’ll point out that Michael Jordan has a higher career scoring average. True. Jordan averaged 30.1 points per game. LeBron is closer to 27. But availability is a skill. Playing at an elite level for 23 seasons is something we’ve never seen. Kareem was a "mediocre starter" by the time he hit his early 40s. LeBron? He’s 41 years old right now and still dropping 30-point games like it’s 2012.
The Active Chasers: Anyone Close?
Honestly? No.
Well, "no" in the sense that nobody is catching LeBron. But there’s plenty of movement happening in the top 10. Kevin Durant is the name you’ve got to watch. In January 2026, Durant officially passed Wilt Chamberlain to take over the #7 spot. He’s currently sitting at 31,544 points and is breathing down the neck of Dirk Nowitzki.
Durant is perhaps the most effortless scorer the game has ever seen. Watching him pull up from the elbow is like watching a glitch in a video game. But injuries have been his shadow. Every missed game for KD is another nail in the coffin of his chances to catch the top three.
Then you have James Harden. This might surprise the casual fan, but Harden just bumped Shaquille O’Neal out of the top 10. On January 12, 2026, "The Beard" hit a three against the Hornets to move into 9th place all-time. Love him or hate him, the guy knows how to get to the line and rack up points.
The Stephen Curry Factor
We can't talk about scoring without the greatest shooter ever. Steph is currently sitting at #24 all-time with 26,284 points. He’s not going to be the #1 leader. He started too late, and he doesn't take enough shots inside the arc to accumulate the raw volume needed. But he changed the way points are scored. The all time scoring leader NBA used to be a big man’s title. Kareem, Malone, Wilt—they lived in the paint. LeBron and Curry shifted the geography of the game to the perimeter.
What it Takes to Break the Record
If you wanted to build a player in a lab to break LeBron’s record, you’d need a monster. You’d need someone who enters the league at 18, averages 27 points for 20 years, and never gets a serious injury.
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Think about Luka Dončić. He’s a scoring machine. But even Luka, who averages nearly 34 points a game right now for the Lakers (yeah, that still feels weird to say), has a long way to go. He’s currently at 13,953 points. He would need to maintain this insane pace for another decade just to get into the conversation.
The math is brutal.
- Year 1-5: You need to be a superstar immediately. No "rookie learning curve."
- Year 6-15: You have to avoid the ACL tears, the Achilles ruptures, and the "load management" era.
- Year 16-22: You have to actually want to keep playing. Most guys are rich and tired by 35.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Analysts
If you're tracking the all time scoring leader NBA race, don't just look at the box scores. Pay attention to the "points per 48 minutes" and "true shooting percentage" to see who is actually efficient versus who is just taking a lot of shots.
- Watch the 35,000 Mark: This is the "God Tier." Only three players have ever crossed it. Kevin Durant is the next candidate, but he’ll need to stay healthy through 2027 to get there.
- The Playoff Tax: Remember that official "all-time" lists usually exclude playoffs. If you want the real number of how much a player has scored in NBA uniforms, LeBron’s lead is even more insurmountable because he’s played the equivalent of three extra seasons just in the playoffs.
- Efficiency Matters: LeBron reached his totals shooting over 50% from the field. That’s the secret. You can't just be a volume shooter; you have to be a high-percentage finisher.
The record isn't just a number. It's a testament to surviving the most grueling professional sports schedule on earth for over two decades. We might not see another leader in our lifetime.
To stay ahead of the next milestone, keep a close eye on the NBA's official daily stat corrections and active leaderboards. Trends suggest that the "pace of play" in 2026 is higher than in the 90s, which gives younger stars a mathematical advantage. However, until someone shows the same 20-year durability as LeBron James, his spot at the top of the all time scoring leader NBA list is as safe as a vault.
Track the upcoming Houston Rockets schedule to see how fast Kevin Durant climbs to #6, and keep an eye on the Clippers to see if James Harden can reach the 30,000-point club by the end of this season.