Top 10 college basketball players who scored over 2000 points ft. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Stephen Curry and more

Joe Cox
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (left) and Tim Duncan (right) are two of the greatest college players ever.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (left) and Tim Duncan (right) are two of the greatest college players ever.

In the 21st century, most college basketball legends don't stick around long enough to put up a ton of numbers.

Stars like Kevin Durant and Anthony Davis, who played a year each, couldn't accumulate enough numbers. But there are college hoops megastars who stick around long enough to put up points. Here are 10 of the greatest college players who reached 2,000 career points.


Ten college basketball players who scored 2,000 points

#10 Stephen Curry, 2,635 points

Before he was an NBA star, Stephen Curry dominated at Davidson College.
Before he was an NBA star, Stephen Curry dominated at Davidson College.

Steph was hidden at tiny Davidson College and managed three seasons of college hoops before the NBA.

He scored 2,635 points and made 414 3-point shots. Steph averaged 31.2 points per game as a sophomore and 34.0 ppg as a junior.

#9 Tim Duncan, 2,117 points

Duncan was an under-the-radar recruit to Wake Forest, averaging 9.8 ppg as a freshman.

As a sophomore, he was All-ACC but played two more seasons. Finishing with 2,117 points and 1,570 rebounds, Duncan might be the last No. 1 overall NBA Draft pick to play four years in college.

#8 Tyler Hansbrough, 2,872 points

Hansbrough was a four-year star at North Carolina. He had gone pro after his junior year and had already scored over 2,000 career points.

A four-time Consensus All-American, Hansbrough averaged between 18 and 22 ppg each year. If Duncan was the last No. 1 pick to stay four years, Hansbrough will probably be the last four-year star at a power conference school.

#7 Christian Laettner, 2,460 points

Laettner was another four-year star. He's probably the last player who will play in four Final Fours, as Duke reached it each season of his career.

Laettner won national titles as a junior and senior. He capped his career by being the last man on the bench for the famous 1992 U.S Olympic "Dream Team."

#6 Larry Bird, 2,850 points

Larry Bird was a collegiate legend at Indiana State.
Larry Bird was a collegiate legend at Indiana State.

He only played three years, but Larry Bird lit up college basketball at Indiana State. He lost a year as a transfer from Indiana but scored 918, 959 and 973 points in his collegiate seasons.

Let's also remember, there was no 3-point line, and Bird shot 53.3% in his career. He took tiny Indiana State to the NCAA title game and played in the most viewed college basketball game ever.

#5 Elvin Hayes, 2,884 points

One of the most accomplished college basketball players ever, Hayes could score anytime.

His 1,214 points as a senior is eye-popping. He also grabbed 1,602 rebounds in 93 total games. Had he not been around during the UCLA dynasty, Houston would have won every title imaginable with Hayes.

#4 David Robinson, 2,669 points

Robinson's story could be fiction. Admitted to the Naval Academy when he barely cleared their maximum height allowable at six-foot-six, he grew to seven-foot-one.

He blocked 516 shots and stuck around long enough to go 1-for-1 from the 3-point range. He scored and rebounded seemingly at will and was as close to a rags-to-riches story as college hoops can provide.

#3 Oscar Robertson, 2,973 points

Robertson was the forefather of the multi-faceted guard, the guy who practically invented the triple-double was a machine in college.

Sure, he scored all those points (984, 978, and 1,011 in three seasons). But at six-foot-five, he also grabbed 1,338 rebounds in 88 career games. He didn't quite win a title, but "The Big O" did everything else.

#2 Pete Maravich, 3,667 points

Obviously, Pistol Pete was a phenomenon who will never be replicated. He averaged 44.2 points per game in college.

Because of how mediocre LSU was, he never reached an NCAA Tournament. Maravich's college career spanned just 83 total games. But without decent teammates or a 3-point shot, Maravich wrote the college basketball record book.

#1 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 2,325 points

The man who was then known as Lew Alcindor is the collegiate GOAT. A consensus All-American in all three seasons, Kareem was also a national champion each year.

He made 63.9% of his shots, grabbed 1,367 rebounds and was 86-2 in his college basketball career.

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