As a former ESPN writer and lifelong hoops obsessive, I’ve been staring at the NBA all-time scoring leaders—and what hit me wasn’t just how many legends are on that list. It was how overwhelmingly concentrated they are in one era. The 1990s didn’t just produce great shooters; they forged an entire generation of elite scorers. Let’s unpack why this decade still looms over the record books—and what it means for today’s stars like Lillard and Giannis. Spoiler: talent alone doesn’t explain it.