Even in defeat, Kevin Durant found a way to make history. The Houston Rockets may have fallen to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a thrilling 125-124 double-overtime contest, but Durant‘s performance etched his name deeper into the NBA record books.
The 19-year veteran surpassed 25,000 career points in regular-season play, becoming just the twelfth player in league history to reach that mark while also ranking among the top 10 in total playoff points.
The achievement came in the same building where he first became a superstar, Oklahoma City‘s Paycom Center, adding an emotional layer to an already wild night.
A record overshadowed by chaos
Durant‘s milestone might have been the headline on any other night, but the game’s ending provided plenty of drama.
With 2.2 seconds left in the first overtime, the Rockets nearly saw disaster when Durant grabbed a rebound and mistakenly signaled for a timeout that his team didn’t have. Had officials noticed, it would have resulted in a technical foul and potentially cost Houston the game.
Fortunately for the Rockets, the referees missed it, though Durant‘s troubles weren’t over. In regulation, he had already missed a key free throw that allowed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to force overtime.
Then, in the second extra period, Durant fouled out after biting on a pump fake from Gilgeous-Alexander, who buried both free throws to seal the Thunder‘s win.
For Thunder supporters, the night carried a sense of symmetry. Durant, once the face of their franchise, was now the opposing star and his late-game errors offered the home crowd a moment they’ve waited nearly a decade for.
Yet even as boos echoed across the arena, respect lingered. The fans witnessed one of basketball’s greatest scorers cross another historic threshold in the same city where his legend began.
Durant finished with 33 points, nine rebounds, and five assists, his efficiency and poise still evident despite the miscues. The loss stung, but his continued climb up the all-time scoring charts reaffirmed what everyone already knows: few players in NBA history have combined longevity, consistency, and skill like him.
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