NEW YORK – James Harden has passed Larry Bird on the NBA’s all-time scorecard and is now in 34th place overall. Harden reached the milestone by scoring 24 points on Saturday night in the Brooklyn Nets’ 100-95 win over the Detroit Pistons.
“We all know how good Larry was and what he did in Boston,” Harden said. “A legend. And I think I’m just playing the game the right way, and hopefully good things will happen to me as one of the best basketball players ever played is a great honor.”
Harden now has 21,792 points, one more than Bird.
Harden also had 10 rebounds, 10 assists and three blocks to go with his 24 points on Saturday. It was the ninth triple-double that Harden has recorded since joining the Nets in mid-January. According to ESPN’s Stats & Information research, it equals the third most triple-doubles registered by a player in a single season in the Nets franchise.
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James Harden shows his surprise at the post-game press conference when he learned he’d passed Larry Bird on the all-time scoreboard.
It is also the fourth most by a player in his first season with a team, according to data from Elias Sports Bureau.
Harden scored the last 10 points of Saturday’s win for Brooklyn – righting his second-most tie-in times. With the win over Detroit, the Nets improved to 8-1 when Harden records a triple-double, and he can get past Gary Payton (21,813 points) and secure 33rd overall place by scoring his next 22 runs.
“I just have to keep building because at the end of the day I want my name to be mentioned among those greats,” said Harden.