Wilt Sets Rookie Mark
On this day in 1960, the Philadelphia Warriors’ Wilt Chamberlain set an NBA rookie record by scoring 58 points in a 127-117 win over the Detroit Pistons. Chamberlain would tie his mark less than one month later, but no other rookie in NBA history has matched or surpassed it:
58 — Wilt Chamberlain (Jan. 25, 1960)
58 — Chamberlain (Feb. 21, 1960)
57 — Rick Barry (Dec. 14, 1965)
56 — Earl Monroe (Feb. 13, 1968)
55 — Elgin Baylor (Feb. 25, 1959)
55 — Chamberlain (Nov. 12, 1959)
55 — Brandon Jennings (Nov. 14, 2009)
Chamberlain also grabbed 42 rebounds in this game. It was the first 50-point, 40-rebound game in NBA history. Chamberlain is still the only player in NBA history to record such a game, having done so five times.
Full-Tilt Boogie
On this day in 2016, the Sacramento Kings’ DeMarcus Cousins scored a career-high 56 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in a loss to the Charlotte Hornets. Cousins, who scored 48 points the previous game, is the only player in franchise history to score at least 45 points in consecutive games.
Cousins shot 21-30 from the field (70.0%) and made 13 of his 16 free throws. Cousins is one of only five players in NBA history to record a 55-point, 10-rebound game with a field goal percentage of at least 70% (a total of 10 instances):
Wilt Chamberlain (5 times)
Anthony Davis (2 times)
Kevin McHale
Karl Malone
DeMarcus Cousins
MJ Reaches 10K Points
On this day in 1989, the Chicago Bulls’ Michael Jordan scored 33 points in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, ending the game with exactly 10,000 career points. Jordan is the second-fastest player in NBA history to reach that mark (by games played):
236 — Wilt Chamberlain
303 — Michale Jordan
315 — Elgin Baylor
319 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
334 — Oscar Robertson
Jordan averaged 32.5 PPG, 8.0 RPG, and 8.0 APG that season, the latter two figures career highs. He became the first player in NBA history to record at least 2,500 points, 500 rebounds, and 500 assists in a season, a feat he repeated the following season. Only two other players in NBA history have recorded even one such season: Russell Westbrook (2016-17) and James Harden (2018-19).
Nothing Free for Kareem
On this day in 1973, the Milwaukee Bucks’ Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored 48 points and grabbed 24 rebounds in a loss to the Houston Rockets, setting an NBA single-game record for most points scored without a free throw attempt. Abdul-Jabbar’s mark was later matched and eventually surpassed:
50 — Jamal Murray (Feb. 19, 2021)
48 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Jan. 25, 1973)
48 — Hakeem Olajuwon (Jan. 30, 1997)
44 — Alex English (March 3, 1984)
44 — Wally Szczerbiak (April 13, 2003)
44 — Klay Thompson (Jan. 21, 2019)
Prior to Abdul-Jabbar, no player had ever recorded a 40-point game without attempting a free throw.
Abdul-Jabbar made 24 of his 32 attempts from the field (75.0%). His 24 field goals made are still the franchise single-game record.