Most Field Goals Attempted in NBA History

A photo of LeBron James.
(Wikimedia Commons/Erik Drost)
  • LeBron James has attempted the most field goals in NBA history.
  • The most field goals James has ever attempted in a season was 1,823.
  • There are 19 players with at least 20,000 career field goal attempts.

To make a lot of field goals, an NBA player has to be willing to put up a lot of shots each night.

Some of the greatest players to ever step onto the court did just that, which gave me a nice option to choose the over on points on my NBA parlays whenever I bet online

Who has the most field goals attempted in NBA history? Let’s take a look as of Dec. 18, 2024.

Most Attempted Field Goals in NBA History

RankPlayerField Goals Attempted
1LeBron James29,736
2Kareem Abdul-Jabbar28,307
3Karl Malone26,210
4Kobe Bryant26,200
5Michael Jordan24,537
6Elvin Hayes24,272
7John Havlicek23,930
8Dirk Nowitzki23,734
9Wilt Chamberlain23,497
10Carmelo Anthony22,643
11Dominique Wilkins21,589
12Vince Carter21,339
13Kevin Garnett21,142
14Alex English21,036
15Hakeem Olajuwon20,991
16Russell Westbrook20,894
17Tim Duncan20,334
18Elgin Baylor20,171
19Kevin Durant20,139
20Allen Iverson19,906

Who Has Attempted the Most Field Goals in NBA History?

LeBron James has attempted the most field goals in NBA history.

James has been his team’s No. 1 option for over two decades, consistently shouldering a high volume of shots to keep them competitive. He’s averaged over 17 field goal attempts per game in each of his seasons.

The most field goals James has ever attempted in a season was 1,823 during the 2005-06 season, his third in the league.

The most field goals he’s attempted in a game was 36, when he put up 56 points during a Cleveland Cavaliers 105-98 loss to the Toronto Raptors on March 20, 2005. He made exactly half of those shots.

The four-time MVP holds the record for the most points in NBA history, converting over 50% of his shots throughout his career while giving me a solid option to choose the over on his points on my basketball parlays.

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