Suns Star Kevin Durant Reacts to Passing Career Milestone

The all-time great became the 8th player to reach 29,000 points in NBA history last night

Oct 26, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) moves the ball against Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) in the first half of the home opener at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns moved to 2-1 on the season with a 114-102 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night - and a key player on the team also reached a historic milestone.

Kevin Durant became the 8th player in the history of the NBA to hit 29,000 career points with a pull-up three-point hit midway through the fourth quarter - joining Wilt Chamberlain, Dirk Nowitzki, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Karl Malone, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and LeBron James in a wildly exclusive club.

Durant spoke about the momentous milestone postgame, taking a very appreciative and gracious approach to a night that should be about the accomplishment.

"I done hit a couple milestones since I got here... I gotta give credit to to the people who helped me since I was a kid, taught me the game, teammates... I tend to think about them a lot... grateful that I have such great people in my life to help push me and lift me up when I needed it," he said post-game.

Durant referred to previously passing Moses Malone, Carmelo Anthony, and Shaquille O'Neal on the scoring list while in a Suns uniform - and has collected an All-Star and All-NBA selection alike since being acquired by Phoenix in February 2022.

Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer also praised Durant postgame:

"Just what a tribute to a great, generational talent. I feel incredibly lucky to be around him every day... He gets to great spots to be able to shoot and score against sometimes really great defense."

Durant has absolutely continued to hold the mantle of being arguably the top scorer in the league even in his age-36 season - averaging 27.5 PPG on an absurd 55.9/50/81.3 raw shooting splits line while seemingly thriving in Budenholzer's system.

Durant's next goal is to pass Chamberlain - who he currently trails by 2,409 points to get into 7th place on the all-time scoring list. That will certainly take some time to accomplish - until then, Phoenix should relish the time that Durant spends here as he tries to deliver a first-ever title to the city in the process.

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