Lakers: Carmelo Anthony Passes Moses Malone In All-Time Scoring
Lakers reserve power forward Carmelo Anthony rode a wave of scorching shooting tonight to make a little NBA history during LA's 121-118 nail-biter of a victory over budding superstar Ja Morant and the visiting Memphis Grizzlies. Thanks to a crisp, nothing-but-net triple with 3:18 left in the third quarter tonight, Anthony surpassed Hall of Fame center Moses Malone to ascend to ninth place on the NBA's all-time scoring list.
Melo, 37, finished the contest with 27,423 career points, just three games into his 19th NBA season (and first with Los Angeles). Anthony enjoyed a red-hot shooting night, scoring 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting, including 6-of-8 shooting from three-point land. He also notched three rebounds, two blocks, an assist and a steal, all in just 27:35 of game action. Anthony also tied offense-first shooting guard Malik Monk for a team-best +19 plus-minus rating.
As you'll hear, the Staples Center faithful relished the moment:
The Lakers now have seven players among the nine all-time NBA league leaders in scoring.
There is a major caveat to this achievement. Anthony still trails Malone on the combined all-time NBA/ABA scoring list, which accounts for Malone's first two pro seasons spent in the ABA, with the Utah Stars and Spirits of St. Louis from 1974-1976. Malone's total when those two seasons are counted is 29,580 points.
On that combined list, Anthony remains on the outside of the top ten looking in. Malone is ranked ninth, ahead of former Lakers great Shaquille O'Neal (28,596 points) and former Kentucky Colonels/Denver Nuggets Hall of Famer Dan Issell. Anthony is 12th, nipping at Issell's heels. Issell scored a total of 27,482 across 15 combined NBA and ABA seasons.
So can Anthony crack the combined NBA/ABA top ten and leapfrog Shaq this year? Last season, Anthony averaged 13.4 points per game with Portland and missed just three contests. To pass Shaq's total, Melo would need to score 1,173 more points this season. Considering his advanced age and NBA miles, let's assume he misses at least 10 contests. Over 72 games, Anthony would need to average 17 points a pop. He hasn't averaged more than 16.2 points a night since his final All-Star season with the Knicks in 2016-17.
That said, Anthony is averaging 17.7 points per game through his first three bouts in Los Angeles, as a sorely-needed release valve from deep for stars LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook.
