History has been made.
The 2014-15 NBA regular season continued on Sunday, December 14 with a number of historical performances. None were as significant as one of the game’s true icons passing a fellow all-timer on the career scoring list.
Here’s how it all transpired.
1. Kobe Bryant scored 26 points and Carlos Boozer tallied 22 points and 10 rebounds to help the Los Angeles Lakers get past the Minnesota Timberwolves 100-94. Shabazz Muhammad matched a career-high with 28 points and Andrew Wiggins scored 16 points for the Timberwolves.
With his ninth point of the game, Bryant passed Michael Jordan for No. 3 on the all-time scoring list.
2. Of the Top 3 players on the all-time scoring list, only Bryant has scored every one of his points for the same team.
3. Stephen Curry posted 34 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and one steal as the Golden State Warriors defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 128-122 in overtime. Tyreke Evans scored 34 points and Jrue Holiday had 30 for the Pelicans, but New Orleans ultimately fell short without Anthony Davis.
Evans’ 34 points set a new season-high and Holiday’s match his own.
4. Golden State has won 16 consecutive games.
5. Mike Dunleavy scored 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting to help the Chicago Bulls take down the Miami Heat 93-75. Going up against his former team, Luol Deng led Miami with 17 points, 10 rebounds, one assist, two blocks and a steal on 6-of-14 shooting.
Chicago improves to an Eastern Conference-best 11-3 on the road. They’re 4-5 at home.
6. Kyle Lowry stuffed the stat sheet with 21 points, 11 assists, three rebounds and six steals to lead the Toronto Raptors over the New York Knicks 95-90 in overtime. Carmelo Anthony put up 34 points and nine rebounds, but the Knicks continued their nosedive down the standings.
New York hasn’t won a home game since November 22.
7. Russell Westbrook put up 28 points, eight assists, eight rebounds and two steals as the Oklahoma City Thunder blew past the Phoenix Suns 112-88. Kevin Durant chipped in 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting while seeing just 24 minutes of action.
OKC grabbed 63 rebounds. That’s the most of any team in 2014-15.
8. OKC has won six consecutive games. Durant returned seven games ago.
9. John Wall went off for 16 points, eight assists, six rebounds, five steals and three blocks to power the Washington Wizards past the Utah Jazz 93-84. Bradley Beal scored a game-high 22 points for the Wizards, while Alec Burks led the Jazz with 19 points of his own.
The last player with at least 15 points, eight assists, five rebounds, five steals and three blocks was Dwyane Wade on January 24, 2007.
10. Kawhi Leonard took over in every phase of the game as the San Antonio Spurs went on the road to defeat the Denver Nuggets 99-91. Leonard finished with 18 points, eight rebounds, four assists, six blocks and five steals to overshadow a season-high 31 points from Arron Afflalo.
Leonard is the first player to put up at least five blocks and five steals in the same game since Anthony Davis on November 2, 2013.
Bonus Fact: Every one of the Top 3 scorers in NBA history—Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone and Bryant—have played for the Lakers.