LeBron James is on pace to become the 1st player in NBA history to reach 40,000 career points.

The 2023-24 season is more than halfway over and the All-Star break is in the books. What statistical milestones could be toppled before this season is complete? Below are 15 major individual milestones and several team milestones you should have on your radar. 

LeBron James | Los Angeles Lakers

• First in NBA history to 40K points — LeBron James entered the season needing 1,348 points to become the first player in league history to reach 40,000 career points. He has been steadily chipping away at the mark all season and is averaging 24.8 points per game this season, his lowest mark since posting 25 ppg in an injury-riddled 2020-21 campaign.

Even with a slight downturn in scoring, James needs just 132 more points to reach 40,000 as the Lakers come out of the All-Star break. You can keep up with the chase each night James plays with our LeBron James Scoring Tracker.

NBA’s all-time points leaderboard

• All-time lead in minutes played — James passed Lakers legend and Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the all-time scoring mark last season, and this season, he is closing in on Abdul-Jabbar’s mark for career minutes played (57,446). James needs to play 1,644 more minutes to pass Abdul-Jabbar for No. 1 in minutes played. Additionally, James passed Utah Jazz legend and Hall of Famer Karl Malone (54,852) in minutes played in mid-December.

• In terms of games played, James needs seven more games to pass Malone for No. 6 on the all-time list.

• Passing Pippen in steals — James is No. 8 in career steals with 2,248 and needs 60 more steals to pass Scottie Pippen for No. 7 all-time (2,307). He has already surpassed last season’s steals mark (50) and is on pace for about 55 total steals this season.

• Top 6 in 3-pointers made — When 2023-24 started, James trailed Jason Terry and Vince Carter for No. 7, and he surpassed both of them already. He has 104 3-pointers so far this season, putting him 86 behind former teammate Kyle Korver (2,450) for No. 6 on the all-time list.

— NOTE: Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson is a spot ahead of James at No. 7 (2,376 career 3s) and needs 75 more to pass Korver — 

• Triple-doubles & free throws made — James has 110 career triple-doubles and surpassed Jason Kidd for No. 5 on the all-time list in mid-November. He is 10 behind Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic (120) for No. 4 and the odds of James surpassing him are small. However, James can, perhaps, put pressure on catching up to Lakers legend and Hall of Famer Magic Johnson’s triple-double total (138) before the season’s end.

James also ranks fourth in career free throws made (8,287). He needs 92 made free throws to pass Lakers legend Kobe Bryant (8,378) for No. 3. That could be an attainable goal for James considering he is at 200 made free throws this season and is on pace to make about 100 more free throws this season.

Chris Paul | Golden State Warriors

• No. 2 in assists — Chris Paul fractured his left hand in early January and missed a month of action. Still, he may have enough time to surpass Kidd for No. 2 on the all-time assists list before 2023-24 ends. Paul needs 361 more assists to move past Kidd (12,091) for second place on the all-time dimes list.

NBA’s all-time assists leaderboard

• No. 2 in steals — Paul needs 105 more steals to move past Kidd for No. 2 on the all-time steals list, but given how much time he missed with injury, his chances of doing so seem slim at best.

NBA’s all-time steals leaderboard

Kevin Durant | Phoenix Suns

• Passing Shaq, Carmelo in points — Kevin Durant entered the season at No. 13 on the all-time points scored list and has not let up. Early in the season, he passed No. 12 Hakeem Olajuwon (26,946 points) and No. 11 Elvin Hayes (27,313) before getting past No. 10 Moses Malone (27,409) in December. Two of Durant’s former contemporaries — Shaquille O’Neal and Carmelo Anthony — are within range before 2023-24 is out.

Durant needs 45 more points to pass Anthony for No. 9 and 352 more to pass O’Neal for. No. 8. That would put him on the cusp of 30,000 career points and join a group that includes James, Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki and Wilt Chamberlain.

NBA’s all-time points leaderboard

James Harden | LA Clippers

• Cracking Top 20 in all-time scoring — Harden has found a comfortable niche with the LA Clippers since being dealt shortly after the season began. He has scored 838 points this season, which is on track to match or surpass the 1,216 he posted in 2022-23 with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Harden needs 83 points to pass No. 21 Alex English (25,613) and 198 points to pass Vince Carter (25,728) for No. 20 on the all-time scoring list. Should Harden go on a scoring surge to end the season, he could even climb as high as No. 19 as he needs 541 points to pass Kevin Garnett (26,071) for No. 19.

• Passing Rondo for No. 14 in assists — To open 2023-24, Harden sat at No. 20 on the all-time assists list but has steadily climbed the ranks and is No. 15 at the All-Star break. Harden passed Maurice Cheeks for No. 15 on the all-time assists list in early February and needs 167 more dimes to pass  Rajon Rondo (7,584) for No. 14.

• No. 2 in 3-pointers made — Harden is No. 3 in NBA history in 3-pointers made (2,890) and has a chance at passing Ray Allen (2,973) for second place on that list. He needs 84 more 3-pointers this season to move ahead of Allen and net an even 220 3-pointers in 2023-24. However, the last time Harden made 220 3s was in 2019-20, when he sank 299.

Russell Westbrook | LA Clippers

200 career triple-doubles — The NBA’s all-time leader in triple-doubles is on the cusp of triple-double history once again. Westbrook snagged the all-time mark in 2021 with his 182nd career triple-double and has been adding to that mark since then.

• He needs two triple-doubles to become the first player with 200 triple-doubles. Should Westbrook accomplish the feat, he’d add to his triple-double lore. Per Statmuse, Westbrook’s 200 triple-doubles would be more than all but four teams have in their entire history.

Nikola Jokic | Denver Nuggets

• No. 4 in triple-doubles — This is a bit of a misnomer as Jokic already is No. 4 in career triple-doubles with 120. However, that puts him just 10 ahead of LeBron James at No. 5, so this is more to see if Jokic can both hold off James and, also, close in on Magic Johnson (138) for third place on the list.

Last season, Jokic had an NBA-best 29 triple-doubles, on the heels of 19 and 16, respectively, in the two seasons before that. It seems unlikely he’ll pass Johnson this season, but he’s sure to keep pressure on James in the race to see who can reach the No. 3 spot first.

Damian Lillard | Milwaukee Bucks

• Passing Reggie Miller for No. 4 in 3s — In his first season with the Bucks, Lillard hit two milestones: scoring 20,000 career points and moving into the top 5 in 3-pointers made. Lillard can climb even higher before the season is over and needs 26 3-pointers to pass Reggie Miller for No. 4 on the all-time list. Lillard has made 145 3-pointers this season and has made 200 or more 3-pointers in eight of the last 10 seasons.

Team milestones

These milestones are specific to franchises and not tied to the NBA’s all-time list. Below are players who can reach the top five (or ascend within the top five) in a stat category/categories before the end of 2023-24.

(Editor’s note: Teams without an entry means they do not have a player within a realistic range of moving into the top 5 in a stat before 2023-24 ends.)

Atlanta Hawks

• Trae Young needs 36 more assists to move ahead of Doc Rivers (3,866) for the franchise’s assists crown. He passed Mookie Blaylock for the team’s all-time 3-pointers made mark in Atlanta’s game before the All-Star break and needs 57 more 3-point attempts to pass Blaylock for No. 1 in that category.

Charlotte Hornets

• LaMelo Ball needs just 242 more assists to pass No. 5 Baron Davis (1,605) for his spot.

Chicago Bulls

• Coby White needs 54 more 3-pointers made and 110 more 3-point attempts to supplant Ben Gordon in makes (770) and Scottie Pippen in attempts (2,031) and reach No. 3 in both categories.

Cleveland Cavaliers

• Darius Garland needs 28 more 3-pointers made to pass former Cavs player Cedi Osman (628) for No. 5 in that category. Additionally, should Garland get hot from deep to close out the season and nail at least 123 3-pointers, he’d pass Kyrie Irving (723) for No. 4. Tristan Thompson needs to play in seven more games to pass Hot Rod Williams for No. 5 on the team’s games played list.

Dallas Mavericks

• Luka Doncic is already No. 3 on the team’s all-time 3-pointers made list with 1,098. However, he is just 43 shy of passing Jason Terry (1,140) for No. 2 in that category. Doncic also needs six more rebounds to move past Michael Finley (3,245) for No. 5 on the all-time list. He is just 101 rebounds away from passing Shawn Bradley (3,340) for No. 4 in that statistic.

Denver Nuggets

• Nikola Jokic needs 535 more points to move ahead of former Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony (13,970 points) as the team’s No. 3 all-time scorer.

Golden State Warriors

• Draymond Green needs to play in at least 21 games to pass Chris Mullin (807) for No. 2 in that category.

• Klay Thompson needs 18 more field goals to pass Hall of Famer Paul Arizin (5,628) for No. 5 in that statistic.

Indiana Pacers

• Myles Turner needs 31 more blocks to pass Jermaine O’Neal (1,245) for the team’s all-time blocks mark. Veteran guard TJ McConnell ranks No. 8 in assists (1,587) and needs 199 more to pass Travis Best (1,785) for No. 5 on the team’s all-time assists list.

Los Angeles Lakers

• LeBron James is already No. 4 in team history in 3-pointers made (749) and No. 3 in 3-point attempts (2,125). He needs two more 3-pointers to pass Nick Van Exel for No. 3 in 3-pointers made (750) and 131 more attempts to pass Derek Fisher (2,255) for No. 2 in 3-point attempts.

• Anthony Davis needs 107 more blocks to supplant Kobe Bryant (640) for No. 5 in that category.

Miami Heat

• Tyler Herro ranks No. 3 in team history in 3-pointers made (715) and No. 4 in 3-pointers attempted (1,859). He needs 92 more 3-pointers to pass Tim Hardaway (806) in that statistic and 12 more 3-point attempts to pass Eddie Jones for No. 3 (1,870).

Milwaukee Bucks

• Khris Middleton needs five more steals to pass Bucks legend Sidney Moncrief (874) for No. 4 in that category and needs to play in at least 12 games to pass Junior Bridgeman (711) for No. 3 in games played.

Minnesota Timberwolves

• Anthony Edwards needs 754 points to move up to No. 5 on the team’s all-time scoring list. Along the way, he’d pass Wally Szczerbiak (No. 6, 6,777) and Kevin Love (6,989) for the No. 5 points total in Wolves history.

• Karl-Anthony Towns needs 192 more assists to pass Pooh Richardson (1,973) for No. 3 on the franchise’s all-time dimes list. He needs four more steals to pass Sam Mitchell (449) for No. 4 in that category and 57 steals to pass Corey Brewer (502) for No. 3.

New Orleans Pelicans

• Jonas Valanciunas needs 62 more rebounds to surpass Tyson Chandler (2,225) for No. 5 on the team’s all-time rebounding list.

• Brandon Ingram needs 31 more 3-pointers and 22 more 3-point attempts to pass Ryan Anderson in makes (533) and Peja Stojakovic (1,369) in attempts.

Philadelphia 76ers

• Tobias Harris needs 24 more 3-pointers to pass Andre Iguodala (563) for No. 4 in 3-pointers made.

• Tyrese Maxey needs 92 more 3-pointers made to pass Iguodala (and likely reach No. 5, trailing Harris).

Phoenix Suns

• Devin Booker needs to make 78 more free throws to move ahead of Amar’e Stoudemire (3,044) in that category. He also needs 176 more assists to pass Jason Kidd (3,011) for No. 5 in that category. Lastly, Booker is No. 2 on the team’s all-time scoring list, trailing Walter Davis (15,666) by 1,742 points. He can make a serious dent in that margin before season’s end, too.

Portland Trail Blazers

• Anfernee Simons needs 50 more 3-pointers to move ahead of Nicolas Batum (751) for No. 5 on the team’s 3-pointers made list and is 72 shy of passing Terry Porter (773) for the No. 4 spot.

Sacramento Kings

• De’Aaron Fox is 638 points away from surpassing Sam Lacey (9,895) for No. 5 in scoring. Along the way, he’d also pass No. 7 Peja Stojakovic (9,498) and No. 6 DeMarcus Cousins (9,894) in scoring as well. Additionally, Fox needs 94 more assists to pass Reggie Theus (2,809) for No. 4 in that category.

Toronto Raptors

• Gary Trent is 61 3-pointers away from passing Terrence Ross (598) for No. 5 on the team’s 3-pointers made list. Along the way, Trent would also pass No. 7 Vince Carter (554) and No. 6 Andrea Bargnani (579), too.

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Jeff Case is a producer for NBA.com.

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