Kevin Durant Passes Michael Jordan, Joins Elite Company in Historic Night

Kevin Durant is now fifth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. The Houston Rockets forward passed Michael Jordan on Saturday night, draining a corner 3-pointer off an assist from Reed Sheppard with 3:23 remaining in a 123-122 win over the Miami Heat. The bucket pushed Durant to 32,393 for his career, surpassing Jordan’s mark of 32,292.

(Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images)

The Rockets played a highlight reel to celebrate the achievement, showcasing Durant’s career from his first buckets with the Seattle SuperSonics to his championship runs with the Golden State Warriors.

Durant had entered the game needing 25 points to pass Jordan — coincidentally equal to his season average. He was slow to get there. 11 points in the first half became 21 through three quarters, and a 3-pointer with 4:42 left put him at 24 on the night. One basket away. Then came the corner triple.

KD PASSES MJ

With this three, Kevin Durant passes Michael Jordan for 5th on the all-time SCORING list! pic.twitter.com/byqx3AFLer

— NBA (@NBA) March 22, 2026

After the game, Durant reflected on what passing Jordan actually means — and what it doesn’t.

“He’s not the leader in points, but his imprint, his impact on the game is so big that it’s always historical even coming close to what he’s done on the basketball court in any type of form,” Durant said. “So to be close in points, it’s a true honor. It’s a test to longevity and loving the game, the stuff that MJ portrayed every day. And that’s what usually gets you into these places — when you work on your craft religiously and love the game.”

Kevin Durant Joins Elite Company

Jordan was the third Hall of Famer Durant has passed this season, following Wilt Chamberlain (31,419) and Dirk Nowitzki (31,560). The only players ahead of him now are Kobe Bryant (33,643), Karl Malone (36,928), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387), and LeBron James (43,229).

Durant is averaging 25.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.4 assists this season while shooting 51.7 percent from the floor, 40.8 percent from beyond the arc, and 88.5 percent on free throws, leading the Rockets to a 42-27 record and strong playoff positioning in the Western Conference. He has averaged at least 25 points per game in 17 of his 18 NBA seasons and has shot 50 percent or better from the field in each of the last 13.

Congrats to @KDTrey5 of the @HoustonRockets for moving into 5th on the all-time SCORING list! pic.twitter.com/4vtDM0f1YN

— NBA (@NBA) March 22, 2026

“It’s an honor for everybody to be a part of that,” coach Ime Udoka said. “Don’t want to make it an afterthought to be top five all-time in scoring. The efficiency, professionalism he plays with — you kind of take it for granted. Passing a name like MJ is a huge accomplishment. I’m sure he’ll have some more names to chop off next.”

Bryant is next. At 1,349 points ahead of Durant with 12 games left in the regular season, that chase will have to wait until next fall. Durant joked that he’s not done yet and has “four more to go.”

Durant has sustained elite production deep into his 30s despite being over four years removed from a ruptured right Achilles tendon during the 2018-19 season in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, which took an entire season from him.

At this point, Durant has a lot of points left to score before his NBA career is finished.