Things to know as NBA tips off

In the opening seconds of Stephen Curry’s NBA career, he got an assist on the first possession, a steal on the second and then tried a three-pointer for the first time at the professional level.

It missed.

In that moment, there probably were not very many people expecting he would become the most prolific threepoint shooter in NBA history. Yet as the new NBA season began Tuesday night, so did the countdown toward Curry surpassing Ray Allen’s mark for three-pointers made in a career.

Allen retired with 2,973 three-pointers in regular-season games. Curry is 141 behind, with 2,832 in his career. At his typical rate of threes made in recent years — about five per game — the Golden State sharpshooter could have the record by mid-December.

Curry is the only player in NBA history to average at least five made three-pointers per game over a full season. He’s done it three times. Curry also has four of the five seasons of at least 300 made threes, including a record 402 in 2015-16; James Harden had the other 300-plus season on that list.

Allen never made more than 269 three-pointers in a season. Curry has topped that six times.

Some other storylines and milestones to watch this season:

CHASING KAREEM

LeBron James could become the NBA’s all-time scoring leader next season.

And, technically, this season as well.

James enters the season No. 3 on the scoring list, 1,561 points away from No. 2 Karl Malone’s 36,928 points. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar tops the list with 38,387 points — currently 3,020 ahead of James.

If James averages 25 points per game, which he did last season, he would catch Malone in his 63rd game this season and could reach Abdul-Jabbar’s mark sometime around the midpoint of the 2022-23 campaign.

All those numbers are regular-season games only, and for purposes of NBA record-keeping, that is the official tally.

But if adding the playoffs, James is in line to become No. 1 in career scoring this season. With postseason included, he has scored 42,998 points, just 1,151 away from Abdul-Jabbar’s 44,149, meaning that’s well within range for James this season.

James has a few other milestones within reach this season. He’s 304 assists shy of 10,000, 21 three-pointers away from 2,000, and one triple-double from having 100 of those.

But perhaps the biggest stat quirk of James’ 1,310-game career is this: He averages 27 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists per game — but, somehow, has never had a game with exactly 27 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists.

POP’S TIME

San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich has 1,310 career regular-season wins, putting him 26 away from outright possession of the NBA record. He’s currently third on the list, behind only No. 2 Lenny Wilkens (1,332) and No. 1 Don Nelson (1,335).

Popovich is entering his 26th season as coach of the Spurs, extending his NBA record for longevity with one franchise.

He doesn’t have a lot of contemporaries in other sports, either.

Connie Mack managed the Philadelphia Athletics for 50 seasons. George Halas coached the Chicago Bears for 40 years (though not consecutively), John McGraw managed the New York Giants for 31, Tom Landry coached the Dallas Cowboys for 29, Curly Lambeau coached the Green Bay Packers for 29, and Don Shula coached the Miami Dolphins for 26.

They’re the only coaches in the four major U.S. leagues to spend as much time with a team as Popovich has with the Spurs.

Bill Belichick is the NFL leader in current tenure, in Year 22 with New England. Nobody else in the major pro leagues is even close to Popovich’s total.

CELEBRATING 75

The NBA is celebrating its 75th anniversary this season. The league’s first game was Nov. 1, 1946, when the New York Knicks visited the Toronto Huskies, back in what was then called the Basketball Association of America.

Toronto and New York play on Nov. 1 this season, too: The Raptors visit the Knicks that night.

The top 75 players in league history will be unveiled in three 25-player blocks from Tuesday through Thursday.

REMEMBERING WILT

The 60th anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game is March 2; he had that night in Hershey, PA., for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks.

Philadelphia (the 76ers) will play the Knicks on March 2 this season as well, in Philadelphia, not Hershey.

But March 2, 1962, wasn’t the night that Chamberlain took ownership of the scoring record. He’d already had it for about three months at that point.

Chamberlain had 78 points on Dec. 8, 1961, for the Warriors in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, breaking the record of 71 points set about a year earlier by Elgin Baylor. So, this year — again keeping with the 60th anniversary theme — the (now Golden State) Warriors are at home on Dec. 8, playing against Portland.