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LeBron James vs Michael Jordan

LeBron James has 43,440 regular-season points through 2025-26 to Michael Jordan's 32,292, but Jordan led after every season from the 4th through 15th.

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What the data shows

  • LeBron James: 1,654 at Season 1, 43,440 at Season 23 (26× higher).
  • Michael Jordan: 2,313 at Season 1, 32,292 at Season 15 (14× higher).

About this chart

Michael Jordan was ahead of LeBron James for almost the whole of their first 15 seasons. Jordan led after season 1 (2,313 points to 1,654), LeBron led after seasons 2 and 3, and Jordan then led after every season from 4 through 15. At the 15-season mark Jordan stood at 32,292 and LeBron at 31,038, a gap of 1,254 points.

LeBron passed Jordan's career total during his 16th season, when he reached 32,543, and has kept scoring to 43,440 points over 23 seasons, the most in NBA history. The chart counts regular-season points only, by the number of seasons each man played. Jordan skipped 1993-94 and 1999 to 2001, and he missed most of his second season with a foot injury, playing 18 games.

The data

Source: Basketball-Reference.com, player pages for LeBron James (jamesle01) and Michael Jordan (jordami01), Totals tables; per-season points summed into cumulative career points by season number. Retrieved November 4, 2026. Column = the player's Nth NBA season actually played (Jordan skipped 1993-94 and 1999-2001, so his 15 seasons span 1984-85 to 2002-03; LeBron's 23 seasons run 2003-04 to 2025-26). Regular season only, no playoffs. LeBron's 2026-27 games (season in progress on 2026-11-04) are excluded. Jordan's 1994-95 comeback season is 17 games; his season 2 (1985-86) is 18 games.

LeBron James vs Michael Jordan, Career regular-season points after each NBA season, Season 1–Season 23
Date🇺🇸 LeBron James🇺🇸 Michael Jordan
Season 11,6542,313
Season 23,8292,721
Season 36,3075,762
Season 48,4398,630
Season 510,68911,263
Season 612,99314,016
Season 715,25116,596
Season 817,36219,000
Season 919,04521,541
Season 1021,08121,998
Season 1123,17024,489
Season 1224,91326,920
Season 1326,83329,277
Season 1428,78730,652
Season 1531,03832,292
Season 1632,543
Season 1734,241
Season 1835,367
Season 1937,062
Season 2038,652
Season 2140,474
Season 2242,184
Season 2343,440

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Suggested caption: “Jordan led for 12 straight seasons. Then LeBron kept going.” Credit the source in your caption; it heads off the 'source?' comments.

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Frequently asked questions

Who has more career points, LeBron James or Michael Jordan?

LeBron James has more, with 43,440 regular-season points through the 2025-26 season against Michael Jordan's 32,292. LeBron's total spans 23 seasons and is the most in NBA history. Playoff points are not included.

Was Michael Jordan ahead of LeBron after the same number of seasons?

Yes, for most of the way. Jordan led after season 1 and after every season from 4 through 15, while LeBron led after seasons 2 and 3. After 15 seasons Jordan had 32,292 points and LeBron had 31,038.

When did LeBron pass Michael Jordan's career points total?

LeBron passed Jordan's final total of 32,292 during his 16th season, ending that year with 32,543 points. Jordan finished his career after 15 seasons.

Where does this data come from?

Basketball-Reference.com, player pages for LeBron James (jamesle01) and Michael Jordan (jordami01), Totals tables; per-season points summed into cumulative career points by season number. Retrieved November 4, 2026. Column = the player's Nth NBA season actually played (Jordan skipped 1993-94 and 1999-2001, so his 15 seasons span 1984-85 to 2002-03; LeBron's 23 seasons run 2003-04 to 2025-26). Regular season only, no playoffs. LeBron's 2026-27 games (season in progress on 2026-11-04) are excluded. Jordan's 1994-95 comeback season is 17 games; his season 2 (1985-86) is 18 games. You can download the full table as a CSV from this page.

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