He may be retiring in only three months, but Kobe Bryant can still be the youngest to something — so long as it’s an exclusive club containing only two other NBA legends.
In Sacramento on Thursday, Bryant joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone in reaching the 33,000-point mark at 37 years and 137 days old. The 20-year veteran hit a turnaround bank shot late in the second quarter to reach the plateau.
Bryant’s career total now stands at 33,010 after dropping 28 points in three quarters against the Kings, which included an alley-oop dunk and buzzer-beating jumper (see below).
Though Abdul-Jabbar (38,387) and Malone (36,928) may be out of reach for Bryant, it should be a while until any other player joins the trio. Most active players who are close are at the end of their careers, while LeBron James seems to be the next in line at 25,740 points.
