Durant 'grateful' to pass Wilt Chamberlain for 7th in all-time NBA points

Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant vaulted Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain into seventh-place on the NBA's all-time scoring leaderboard Friday during Houston's 111-105 road loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.

Durant overtook Chamberlain with a 3-pointer in the third quarter, giving him 17 points in the contest.

"To be amongst the greats is always an honor," Durant told reporters postgame, including Anne M. Peterson of The Associated Press. "Wilt is somebody I studied and tried to look up to as much as I can, a player like that. Like I always say, he set a standard for NBA players and (I'm) grateful to reach that - and inspired by what he produced for the game of basketball."

The Rockets star finished Friday with a team-high 30 points, taking him to 31,435 throughout his 18-year career. He also led the Rockets with 12 rebounds and chipped in with four assists and two blocks in over 39 minutes. However, he posted the only positive plus-minus of Houston's starters (plus-five).

"The fact that we have to rely on a 37-year-old for 40-plus minutes is a problem," Rockets head coach Ime Udoka said after the loss, according to sideline reporter Vanessa Richardson.

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The Trail Blazers, who passed on Durant in 2007 when they instead took center Greg Oden first overall, recognized the Rockets forward's milestone as fans in Portland gave Durant a standing ovation during a break in play.

"These milestones always have me reflecting on the people that helped me get to this point - the journey that I've been through, the close calls and the things that could have went left plenty of times in my life," Durant said. "So to be here, very, very grateful, and Portland is such a classy, classy city for recognizing me in that moment and honoring me."

With only 141 points separating Chamberlain from Dirk Nowitzki in sixth, Durant is a mathematical near-certainty to pass the Dallas Mavericks legend this season, too. Durant, who entered Friday scoring 28.1 points per game over his last 10 contests, could surpass Nowitzki in as soon as six contests if he maintains that production.

There's also a chance the Rockets vet could also equal Michael Jordan by the end of this season. The Chicago Bulls icon finished his career 837 points clear of Chamberlain; Durant can close that gap by averaging 18.6 points over the remaining 47 regular-season games, though that number would climb every time the 37-year-old misses a contest.