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Gasol's, Johnson's pursuits of 20k shouldn't be buried

Scott Cunningham / National Basketball Association / Getty

It's one of the most interesting subplots at the end of the 2016-17 season - that almost nobody is talking about. The 20,000-point plateau, a historic career mark that stands as basketball's closest equivalent to the 3,000-hit club, is in reach for two well-traveled NBA vets: Pau Gasol and Joe Johnson, both fewer than 100 points away.

Reaching that milestone would be incredibly meaningful for the legacies of both players. But as the postseason approaches, it's sort of unclear whether anyone really cares.

What gives?

Well, it probably doesn't help that both players are on teams still jockeying for playoff position. If the Spurs and Jazz were out of the hunt, they could afford to play up the milestone a little more, both from a PR and on-court perspective - like the Mavericks were able to do with Dirk Nowitzki during his chase for 30k earlier this year.

But because San Antonio's and Utah's seasons still matter, they have to prioritize putting their squads in the best position to win games, and then perhaps resting their vets down the stretch once there's nothing more to play for before the postseason.

It's also detrimental to their narratives that neither player has been with their current team for very long. Dirk's big night was particularly special because he did it for the Mavs - where he'd scored all 30,000 career points - and it happened at home in Dallas, no less.

Gasol and Johnson, meanwhile, have lived more nomadic NBA lives, and both signed with their current squads last summer; it's Gasol's fourth team, and Johnson's sixth. Also, while both players have been stars to some degree, neither were ever the kind of household name that gets casual fans excited - not many Knicks fans are turning on "SportsCenter" to see how much closer Johnson got to 20k last night.

Still, it'd be a remarkable achievement for both players.

Getting to 20,000 would be particularly impressive for Gasol, because he was never a major volume scorer. His highest PPG for a season was 20.8 in 2006-07, and he only surpassed 19 in one other campaign.

Meanwhile, Johnson crossing the 20k mark would have very interesting implications for his Hall of Fame chances. Yes, there are some players with 20,000 points who aren't in the Hall, and seven-time All-Stars who didn't make the cut, but no eligible players who've achieved both have been denied.

Thanks to his two championships and international accomplishments, Gasol is probably in regardless, but for a player like Johnson - who's still yet to play in a conference finals, or finish top ten in MVP voting - it could very well make the difference.

It's always a little sad when a player hits 20,000 and nobody really notices. When Vince Carter reached the mark six years ago, he did so in the second half of a down season, in a brief layover with the Phoenix Suns during what appeared to be the tail-end of his career.

The Suns announcer commented on the milestone as if he was announcing Vince's fourth foul of the game.

Meanwhile, there are probably fans who'd be surprised to hear that Antawn Jamison hit 20,000, since he just creaked over the round number during his final season as a little-used Clippers reserve.

Those dudes deserved better, and so do Joe and Pau.

Of course, it's possible that neither players gets there before the regular season runs out. Gasol is currently at 19,915 - 85 away with eight games left in San Antonio's season. If he posts his PPG average (12.5) over those eight contests, he'll get there, but this is, of course, the Spurs They're all but guaranteed the second seed in the West already, so expect the team's older players to start resting in the near future.

Johnson is closer, at 19,941, and if he scores his average (8.8 PPG) over the Jazz's final seven, he'll get there too. But he's been playing fewer minutes since going back to the bench four games ago, and while Utah's still fighting for playoff positioning, the team is likely locked into either the No. 4 or No. 5 seed, and might go into shutdown mode once they're guaranteed to stay above No. 6.

Maybe it'd be for the best if their respective milestones waited until November - both players will likely still be with their current teams, will have a full season and playoff run with that franchise under their belts, and can pass 20k before anything else becomes the dominant story line for their squad.

If it does happen for either guy this year, though, hopefully it happens for both on the same night, and hopefully the double-history being made prevents either player's individual achievement from slipping through the late-season cracks.

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