Mikan Carries Lakers
On this day in 1952, the Minneapolis Lakers’ George Mikan scored a career-high 61 points in a 91-81 win over the Rochester Royals. It was just the second 60-point game in NBA history. Joe Fulks recorded the first such game on Feb. 10, 1949.
Mikan scored 67.0% of the Lakers’ points, the highest such percentage in NBA history by a player in a 60-point game:
67.0% — George Mikan (Jan. 20, 1952)
66.4% — Kobe Bryant (Jan. 22, 2006)
63.4% — David Robinson (April 24, 1994)
62.6% — Wilt Chamberlain (Nov. 3, 1962)
59.4% — Bryant (April 13, 2016)
Mikan took a whopping 45 shots from the field, making 22 of them (48.9%). He also made 17 of his 21 attempts from the free throw line (81.0%).
Lillard Starts Epic Run
On this day in 2020, the Portland Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard scored a career-high and franchise-record 61 points in a 129-124 victory over the Golden State Warriors (a feat he would match later that season on August 11). This was the start of an epic six-game run for Lillard:
61 PTS, 10 REB, 7 AST
47 PTS, 6 REB, 8 AST
50 PTS, 6 REB, 13 AST
36 PTS, 10 REB, 11 AST
48 PTS, 9 REB, 10 AST
51 PTS, 2 REB, 12 AST
Lillard is the only player in NBA history to record five 45-point games and a 30-point triple-double in a six-game span.
Over those six games, Lillard averaged 48.8 PPG, 10.2 APG, and 7.2 RPG. He’s the only player in NBA history to average at least 45 PPG and 10 APG over a six-game span.
Drummond Misfires
On this day in 2016, the Detroit Pistons’ Andre Drummond shot 13-36 from the free throw line in a 123-114 victory over the Houston Rockets, breaking Wilt Chamberlain and DeAndre Jordan’s NBA record for most free throws missed in a game:
23 — Andre Drummond (Jan. 20, 2016)
22 — DeAndre Jordan (Nov. 30, 2015)
22 — Wilt Chamberlain (Dec. 1, 1967)
19 — Chamberlain (Dec. 12, 1967)
Only one player in NBA history has attempted more free throws in a game (he did so twice):
39 — Dwight Howard (Jan. 12, 2012)
39 — Howard (March 12, 2013)
36 — Andre Drummond (Jan. 20, 2016)
Drummond, who had just 23 minutes of playing time in this game, averaged one missed free throw per minute played.
Young Scores and Dishes
On this day in 2020, the Atlanta Hawks’ Trae Young scored 42 points and dished out 15 assists in a loss to the Raptors. Young is the only player in NBA history to record a 40-point, 15-assist game before his 22nd birthday. This was his second such game. The first occurrence came on March 1, 2019, when he had 49 points and 16 assists in a quadruple-overtime loss to the Chicago Bulls.
Young is the only player in franchise history to record a 40-point, 15-assist game, and he’s one of only nine player in NBA history to produce multiple such games.
Career Night for Capela
On this day in 2021, the Atlanta Hawks’ Clint Capela had 27 points, 26 rebounds, five blocks, and zero turnovers in a 123-115 win over the Detroit Pistons. Since the NBA began tracking individual turnovers in 1977-78, Capela and Artis Gilmore (Dec. 12, 1981) are the only players to record at least 25 points, 25 rebounds, and five blocks in a game without committing a turnover.
Capela and Dikembe Mutombo (Dec. 14, 1999) are the only Hawks to record at least 25 points, 25 rebounds, and five blocks in a game. Capela’s 26 rebounds remain his career high.
X-traordinary Effort
On this day in 1988, the Seattle SuperSonics’ Xavier McDaniel established career highs for points (41), rebounds (19), and steals (6) in a 108-96 win over the New York Knicks. Since the NBA began tracking steals in 1973-74, McDaniel is the only player for the Oklahoma City franchise to record at least 40 points, 15 rebounds, and five steals in a game.
McDaniel averaged 21.4 PPG and 6.6 RPG that season, earning the only All-Star selection of his career. McDaniel, Tom Chambers, and Dale Ellis each scored at least 1,600 points for the Sonics in 1987-88, their second straight season achieving that feat. The only other trio to accomplish this feat in consecutive seasons is the Denver Nuggets’ Alex English, Kiki VanDeWeghe, and Dan Issel, who did so in 1981-82 and 1982-83.
Nets “Big 3” Debuts
On this day in 2021, the Brooklyn Nets’ “Big 3” made their debut, falling to the Cleveland Cavaliers 147-135:
Kevin Durant — 38 PTS
Kyrie Irving — 37 PTS
James Harden — 21 PTS, 10 REB, 12 AST
It was the first time in NBA history a team had two players score at least 35 points and a third player record a 20-point triple-double in the same game. Durant, Irving, and Harden are still the only trio to accomplish this feat.
This was one of only 10 regular season games in which the trio appeared on the court together. They also played in six playoff games as a unit.