LeBron James becomes first player to score 40 against all 30 teams

LeBron James is making history on his way to the all-time scoring record.

Brian Martin, for NBA.com

January 25, 2023 10:29 PM

LeBron James continues to make history as he nears the all-time scoring record.

With his 46-point performance against the Clippers on Tuesday, LeBron James now stands just 178 points away from passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time scoring leader.

As that historic moment creeps closer and closer – at his current scoring average (30.2 ppg), LeBron is on pace to pass Kareem on Feb. 4 against New Orleans – LeBron added another accolade to his storied career on Tuesday, becoming the first player in NBA history to score 40 points against all 30 franchises.

Opponent	40-Point Games	Career PPG	Career GP	% 40-Point Games
Milwaukee Bucks	6	28.7	61	9.8%
Miami Heat	5	28.0	43	11.6%
Atlanta Hawks	4	27.5	62	6.5%
Charlotte Hornets/Bobcats	4	28.4	54	7.4%
Indiana Pacers	4	27.3	63	6.3%
New York Knicks	4	26.6	56	7.1%
Portland Trail Blazers	4	28.9	40	10.0%
Boston Celtics	3	28.8	57	5.3%
Detroit Pistons	3	24.1	61	4.9%
New Orleans Pelicans/Hornets	3	27.0	44	6.8%
Brooklyn/New Jersey Nets	2	27.7	59	3.4%
Chicago Bulls	2	28.5	60	3.3%
Cleveland Cavaliers	2	29.0	20	10.0%
Dallas Mavericks	2	27.1	39	5.1%
Golden State Warriors	2	27.7	37	5.4%
Memphis Grizzlies	2	25.4	43	4.7%
Orlando Magic	2	25.6	60	3.3%
Philadelphia 76ers	2	27.5	54	3.7%
Phoenix Suns	2	27.2	39	5.1%
Sacramento Kings	2	26.8	38	5.3%
San Antonio Spurs	2	28.1	40	5.0%
Utah Jazz	2	28.2	37	5.4%
Washington Wizards	2	27.3	56	3.6%
Denver Nuggets	1	26.4	40	2.5%
Houston Rockets	1	25.8	39	2.6%
LA Clippers	1	24.6	41	2.4%
Los Angeles Lakers	1	27.6	30	3.3%
Minnesota Timberwolves	1	26.1	39	2.6%
Oklahoma City Thunder	1	28.1	34	2.9%
Toronto Raptors	1	27.2	58	1.7%

This isn’t the first feat of this kind for LeBron; back in November 2019, he became the first player in league history to record a triple-double against all 30 teams. His current teammate, Russell Westbrook, joined him in that club two months later.

LeBron finished Tuesday’s game with 46 points on 16-of-29 shooting from the field while making a career-high nine 3-pointers in 14 attempts. His ninth triple of the game cut what was once a 21-point fourth-quarter lead for the Clippers down to 10 with 6:46 to play, capping off a 15-point scoring burst from LeBron in just over four minutes of game time as he made three 3-pointers, a pair of free throws and a pair of dunks. The Clippers held LeBron scoreless the rest of the way and outscored the Lakers 20-12 to finish the game, securing a 133-115 win.

Tuesday’s 46-point effort was LeBron’s 73^rd career regular season game with at least 40 points – he has another 28 on his playoff resume – and his first against the Clippers in 41 games played. The Clippers have held LeBron to his second-lowest scoring average against any opponent at 24.6 points per game; only Detroit has been stingier to LeBron, allowing just 24.1 ppg in 61 career games.

While the Clippers finally allowed a 40+ point game to LeBron, they still picked up the victory to extend their win streak over the Lakers to 10 in a row in this intracity rivalry. LeBron losing while scoring at least 40 points is a rarity; following Tuesday’s game, LeBron’s teams are now 60-13 (.822) when he scores at least 40 points.

Most Frequent 40+ Point Game Victim

Milwaukee Bucks: LeBron has six 40+ point performances in 61 career games, scoring at least 40 in nearly 10% of his games against the Bucks.

Highest Percentage of 40+ Point Games

Miami Heat: With five 40+ point performances in 43 games played, LeBron has scored at least 40 in 11.6% of his game played against his former team. LeBron’s 40+ point game rate for his career is 5.2% (73 40+ point games in 1,404 games played).
Portland Trail Blazers and Cleveland Cavaliers: Both teams have allowed LeBron to score at least 40 in 10% of their games played – four in 40 games played against the Blazers and two in 20 games played against the Cavaliers.

Highest Scoring Average