Kobe Bryant engraved his name into the history books even more than it already is, tonight. Bryant became the youngest player in NBA history to reach the summit of 30,000 points, at just 34 years, 104 days old. A feat only four other players have accomplished in the history of the league — Wilt Chamberlain (31,419 points), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387), Karl Malone (36,928) and Michael Jordan (32,292).
Kobe passed Chamberlain’s previous record of 35 years, 179 days. Bryant scored his 30,001 point with 1:16 remaining in the second quarter against the New Orleans Hornets on a running floater in the lane.
In terms of games played, Kobe is the fifth-fastest player to reach 30,000 points. Chamberlain still holds that record at 941 games, followed by Jordan (960), Abdul-Jabbar (1,101) and Malone (1,152). Fun fact: Kobe was also the youngest player to reach 20,000 points. Needless to say, Kobe Bryant is one of the all-time greats and will always be considered so.
Here is the play that put Kobe’s name in the 30,000 point club.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oaiU6Q9n0Q[/youtube]
[ESPN]
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