Thanks to his 48-point effort during an overtime win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night, Houston Rockets star James Harden now leads all active NBA players in 40-point games:
James Harden now leads all active NBA players in career 40-point games (via @bball_ref):
1. Harden (65)
2. LeBron (64)
3. Kevin Durant (55)
4. Russell Westbrook (39)
5. Steph Curry/Melo (36)
7. Dwyane Wade (34)
8. Vince Carter (32)
9. Anthony Davis (30)
10. Damian Lillard (21) pic.twitter.com/5nPLxunMrh— Dan Favale (@danfavale) January 20, 2019
How’s this for some perspective: Harden has 65 40-point games and has only been in the league since the 2009-10 campaign. Meanwhile, LeBron James, who is second with 64, has been in the NBA since the 2003-04 season.
Harden has been a man on a mission this season, and over the last three games, he has scored 163 points after tallying 57 and 58 points, respectively, in his previous two contests before Saturday evening.
The 29-year-old has tallied 19 consecutive 30-point games, and over that span, he has scored 40 points 11 times and 50 points three times.
During the month of January, Harden is averaging an insane 44.4 points, 8.9 assists, 8.6 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.1 blocks over 39.6 minutes per game while shooting 43.3 percent from the floor, 35.0 percent from 3-point range and 90.4 percent from the free-throw line.
The reigning MVP has also put together seven straight double-digit free-throw games, topping out at 23 free-throw attempts during the Rockets’ loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday.
Overall this season, Harden is averaging 35.7 points, 8.5 assists, 6.4 rebounds and 2.1 steals across 37.4 minutes a night while making 43.9 percent of his field goal attempts, 37.6 percent of his long-distance tries and 86.3 percent of his foul shots.
James Harden is also aiming for his second straight scoring title. Last season, he paced the league with 30.4 points per game.
The Rockets improved to 26-19 with their win over the Lakers and will next face the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night.
The post Rockets’ James Harden leads all active players in career 40-point games appeared first on ClutchPoints.
