On This Day (Nov. 9)

Notable events from NBA history that occurred on November 9.

42 for 42

On this day in 1965, the San Francisco Warriors’ Nate Thurmond snagged a career-high 42 rebounds in a 107-102 win over the Detroit Pistons. Thurmond is one of only four players in NBA history to record a 40-rebound game (a total of 24 instances):

• Wilt Chamberlain (14 times)

• Bill Russell (8 times)

• Jerry Lucas

• Nate Thurmond

The four players listed above plus Bob Pettit are the only players in NBA history to average at least 15 RPG for their career.

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Strip and Score

On this day in 1988, the Chicago Bulls’ Michael Jordan scored 52 points and had nine steals in a 110-104 win over the Celtics. Since the NBA began tracking steals in 1973-74, no other player has recorded as many or more steals in a 50-point game.

This was one of five career games in which Jordan scored at least 50 points with five steals. No other player has recorded more than two such games.

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Iron Man

On this day in 1989, the Seattle SuperSonics' Dale Ellis set an NBA single-game record for minutes played with 69 in a quintuple-overtime loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

Ellis scored a career-high 53 points, including 20 in the overtime periods. He shot 18-39 from the field (including 3-7 from 3-point range) and 14-17 from the free throw line.

Two other players reached the 60-minute mark in this game: Ellis’ teammate Xavier McDaniel (68, second-most minutes in NBA history) and the Bucks’ Jay Humphries (62).

This was one of only three games in NBA history that went at least five overtimes:

• Syracuse Nationals 125, Anderson Packers 123 (5 OT)

• Indianapolis Olympians 75, Rochester Royals 73 (6 OT)

• Milwaukee Bucks 155, Seattle SuperSonics 154 (5 OT)

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Historic Triple-Double for Robinson

On this day in 1993, the San Antonio Spurs’ David Robinson had 43 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 blocks in a 110-95 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Since the NBA began tracking blocks in 1973-74, Robinson is the only player to record at least 40 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 blocks in a game. This was his second such game.

Robinson went on to win the NBA scoring title that season, averaging a career-high 29.8 PPG. He also led the league with five triple-doubles.

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Chris Webber’s Debut

On this day in 1993, Chris Webber made his NBA debut with the Golden State Warriors, tallying 15 points, seven rebounds, three steals, and two blocks in a loss to the Houston Rockets.

The first overall pick in the 1993 NBA Draft by the Orlando Magic, Webber was sent to the Warriors in a draft-day trade for Anfernee Hardaway and three future first-round draft picks.

He went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award, averaging 17.5 PPG, 9.1 RPG, and 2.2 BPG while shooting 55.2% from the field. Things soured quickly between Webber and head coach Don Nelson in Oakland, though, and a little more than one year after his debut he was traded to the Washington Bullets in exchange for Tom Gugliotta and three future first-round draft picks.

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Durant’s Scoring Streak

On this day in 2016, the Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant scored 28 points in a 116-95 win over the Dallas Mavericks. It was the last of 72 consecutive 20-point games for Durant, tying him with Michael Jordan for the fourth-longest such streak in NBA history.

Durant’s streak was snapped in his next game, as he scored “only” 18 points in a 125-101 win over the Denver Nuggets. When asked about his decision to leave Durant on the bench for the final 5:51 of the game, head coach Steve Kerr explained “I'm not going to mess with the basketball gods. If you want to leave a guy out there to get some kind of record, you're asking for an injury.”