Clippers star James Harden surpasses Shaquille O’Neal for 9th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list

LOS ANGELES – James Harden has passed Shaquille O’Neal for ninth place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list.

Los Angeles Clippers guard he hit a 3-pointer early in the third quarter Monday night against the Charlotte Hornets, bringing his career total to 28,598 points in his 1,187th regular season game. O’Neal scored 28,596 points in 1,207 games over 19 years.

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Harden, who began the night with 14 points behind O’Neal, finished with 32 points Clippers win 117-109 against the Hornets. He scored 13 points in the first half – including 11 in the first quarter – and scored 11 in the third and eight in the fourth, bringing his point total to 28,614.

Harden entered the night averaging 25.6 points per game, his highest average since the 2019-20 season (34.3 points per game), when he won the last of three straight championship titles.

Harden, who entered the game with 28,582 career points in his 17th season, faces a steep climb to the next spot. Wilt Chamberlain is eighth with 31,419 points, in just 1,045 games over 14 years. LeBron James is the all-time leader with 42,601 points entering Monday’s game with the Los Angeles Lakers. After him there are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant.

Harden recently moved up to 12th on the all-time assists list. The 11-time All-Star also ranks second all-time in 3-pointers made, behind Stephen Curry.