In the aftermath of Sunday’s thrilling comeback victory over Orlando, the Rockets enter this week having won nine of their last 10 games, overall.
With a 9-3 record, Houston is just a half-game back of the Denver Nuggets for the No. 2 spot in the Western Conference standings, and the Rockets continue to rank No. 1 in the NBA in offensive rating.
One obvious reason for that success, both in Sunday’s win over the Magic and the 2025-26 regular season to date, is the offseason addition of All-Star forward Kevin Durant.
In his 19th season, the future Hall of Famer is currently averaging 25.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game while shooting 51.0% overall, 40.0% on 3-pointers, and 88.8% on free throws.
To say the least, those are remarkable numbers for a 37-year-old who has played nearly two decades in the league, and it’s drawing significant attention around the league — especially considering that those numbers are contributing to wins for the Rockets, as well.
On ESPN’s latest The Hoop Collective podcast, Tim Bontemps made the case for Durant as potentially the greatest scorer in league history. He explained:
I think he’s the best scorer in the history of the game.
if you went in a lab and created the ideal person to be a scoring machine in the NBA, it would spit out Kevin Durant. He’s got perfect-looking jump shot. He can handle the ball. He’s 7-feet tall, and he can shoot over anybody. You can’t really contest any shot that he wants to take, because he can get anywhere on the court that he wants.
He only didn’t score like 38 or 39 (points per game) during his career because he was never really trying to do it.
He’s always played within the flow of a team. He’s never tried to dominate the ball, or hijack an offense, or anything. I don’t think there has ever been anybody that is more complete at being able to score, in the history of the sport, than Kevin.
Co-host Brian Windhorst, who knows LeBron James very well, said on the podcast that he believes the Los Angeles Lakers superstar would agree with that assessment.
To Bontemps’ point on not dominating the ball, Durant’s current usage rate (26.7%) is the lowest of his entire career. He’s also averaging just 17.2 shots with the Rockets, which is the 10th time in his past 11 seasons that Durant has put up below 20 attempts per game.
So, not only is Durant the leading scorer on one of the NBA’s best teams, but he’s also leaving ample opportunities for his teammates (including All-Star center Alperen Sengun).
Durant currently ranks No. 8 on the league’s all-time scoring list, though assuming health, he has a clear opportunity to move up to No. 6 later this season.
If not for injuries and his aforementioned focus on only taking quality shots, Durant would almost certainly be even higher on that list. But despite his individual brilliance, the two-time champion has consistently prioritized team accomplishments over his individual statistics, and the Rockets are now reaping the rewards.
This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Is Rockets star Kevin Durant the best scorer in NBA history? ESPN makes the case
Reporting by Ben DuBose, Rockets Wire / Rockets Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
