A matchup between the Rockets and Pelicans was more than a regular-season clash. On the way to a 119-110 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans, Kevin Durant tallied 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists. While doing that, he moved up in NBA’s career points list to the sixth spot. He’s now 730 points away from the top 5 where Michael Jordan sits in the fifth spot. And you know what, doesn’t seem all that impossible for Slim.

Durant surpassed Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki, who amassed 31,560 points across 21 NBA seasons. 37-year-old KD is in his 18th with enough fuel to move into the top 5. His next challenge is Michael Jordan’s 32,292 points.

KD reached the mark with a pair of free throws with less than 15  seconds remaining in the game, bringing his career total to 31,562 points. After the milestone, he said he plans to play, “As long as I can.” Well into his 40s if can, which can make it possible to crack the top 5 elite scorers in NBA history.

Durant is currently averaging 26.0 per contest in the 2025-26 season. If he keeps it up, he’d be on pace to potentially bridge that gap very early into the next season. Maybe earlier if the Rockets make a deep run this season.

The achievement comes only a week after he surpassed Wilt Chamberlain in the seventh spot. He’s breezed past Dirk Nowitzki. And the rarified air that Michael Jordan has breathed for two decades is within reach.

A rival is hoping for Kevin Durant to beat Michael Jordan

If anyone imagined what it would look like if Dirk Nowitzki were on the screen of the Rockets arena, Toyota Center, it would be for this exact historic moment. It seems like the Rockets were prepared when KD surpassed Chamberlain earlier. They reached out to the franchise legend of their in-state rivals, the Dallas Mavericks, to prepare a special message for Kevin Durant.

As expected, Nowitzki was “Not super happy about him passing me.” But he had a glowing review for his rival from their Western Conference Finals days.

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“To me, he is one of the purest, smoothest scorers the game has ever seen. A seven-footer, basically, which he says he’s not. I think he’s a seven-footer with really a two-guard’s game. The shot making, the off-the-dribble stuff, the off-balance stuff… I mean, there’s really nothing you can do to stop him one-on-one. He can always get a great shot up. That’s just how skilled he is, how long he is, how good his release is, and so it’s been incredible to watch his career. Like I said, he’s one of the purest scorers this game has ever seen. And so congrats KD.”

Dirk has sat below Michael Jordan in the scoring list since retiring in 2021. Now even he’s hyping KD to beat His Airness when he concluded his message with, “Keep it going, move up a couple more spots and keep it up. Good luck.”

For KD, this is extra meaningful. He’s idolized the Dunking Deutschman for years as an elite scoring big man. He’s been gunning to surpass his record for a long time. Durant tied Nowitzki in the most apt fashion, a smooth fadeaway from the foul line with 1:05 left in the game. It not only gave the Rockets a 116-102 lead but also through Nowitzki’s signature fadeaway.

With Durant on contract to play through the 2027-28 season with the Rockets, he could be surpassing Kobe Bryant and Karl Malone easily soon too.