In the paint, from the elbow and outside of the arc, there are many spots on the hardwood from which to shoot a basketball.
And with finger rolls, layups, hooks, floaters, line drives and rainbows, there are also a multitude of ways in which to shoot the ball.
Across the course of the NBA's history, a litany of players have made their name by jacking up shots and often celebrating the spoils.
From a La-La Land pioneer to a contemporary king, here is the full list of NBA players to have attempted at least 20,000 field goals.
| Field goals attempted | Player | Team/s |
| 29,313* | LeBron James | Cleveland/Miami/Los Angeles Lakers |
| 28,307 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Milwaukee/Los Angeles Lakers |
| 26,210 | Karl Malone | Utah/Los Angeles Lakers |
| 26,200 | Kobe Bryant | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 24,537 | Michael Jordan | Chicago/Washington |
| 24,272 | Elvin Hayes | San Diego/Houston/Baltimore/Capital/Washington |
| 23,930 | John Havlicek | Boston |
| 23,734 | Dirk Nowitzki | Dallas |
| 23,497 | Wilt Chamberlain | Philadelphia/San Francisco/Los Angeles Lakers |
| 22,643 | Carmelo Anthony | Denver/New York/Oklahoma City/Houston/Portland/Los Angeles Lakers |
| 21,589 | Dominque Wilkins | Atlanta/Los Angeles Clippers/Boston/San Antonio/Orlando |
| 21,339 | Vince Carter | Toronto/New Jersey/Orlando/Phoenix/Dallas/Memphis/Sacramento/Atlanta |
| 21,142 | Kevin Garnett | Minnesota/Boston/Brooklyn |
| 21,036 | Alex English | Milwaukee/Indiana/Denver/Dallas |
| 20,991 | Hakeem Olajuwon | Houston/Toronto |
| 20,659* | Russell Westbrook | Oklahoma City/Houston/Washington/Los Angeles Lakers/Los Angeles Clippers |
| 20,334 | Tim Duncan | San Antonio |
| 20,171 | Elgin Baylor | Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers |
*All stats correct as of 28th April, 2024
