LeBron James passes Shaq for seventh all-time on the NBA’s scoring list

LeBron James has passed Shaquille O’Neal for seventh on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with a fourth quarter free throw during Thursday’s Cavs-Bulls game.

James now has 28,597 points (and counting). He entered Thursday needing 23 points to tie O’Neal, his former teammate.

At 32, James is rising up the list at a historic pace and Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki is next on the list with 30,181 points, although he will certainly continue to add more. Wilt Chamberlain is fifth all-time with 31,419.

James scored the record bucket early midway through the fourth quarter of Cleveland’s game against the Chicago Bulls, draining a free throw for his 28,598th point. The Cavs star entered the night needing 23 points to tie O’Neal.

At age 32, James continues on his remarkable scoring pace, with Dirk Nowitzki next up on the list with 30,181. Nowitzki, of course, remains active. The fifth-leading scorer is Wilt Chamberlain, with 31,419.

In addition to O’Neal, James has passed Moses Malone, Elvin Hayes, Hakeen Olajuwon and Oscar Robertson during the 2016-17 season. He began the year 12th all-time.

James has averaged a tad over 2,000 points per year, so he likely won’t catch Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and score more than 38,387 all-time unless he plays for another decade or so. But he could realistically catch Michael Jordan (32,292 career points) and Kobe Bryant (33,643 career points). Jordan and Bryant are third and fourth all-time, respectively.