Scoring is at an all time high in the NBA and Damian Lillard has been one of the highest scoring players this season, while also being very efficient. Dame is currently averaging 32-7-4 while shooting 47% from the field and 38% from beyond the arc. Capping off one of the best seasons of his career, Lillard exploded for a historical 71 points on 22-38 FG%, while shooting 13-22 from beyond the three point arc. While this was against a historically bad defensive team in the Houston Rockets; 71 points is 71 points none-the-less and scoring over 70 points in an NBA game is a rare occurrence. Looking at it from a historical standpoint, this is one of the greatest scoring games of all time, while also being one of the most efficient.
Here is a list of the top 10 NBA individual scoring games ever:
| Name | Points |
|
100 |
|
81 |
|
78 |
|
73 |
|
73 |
|
73 |
|
72 |
|
71 |
|
71 |
|
71 |
As we can see, this list is mostly dominated by Wilt Chamberlain. Another notable player that I did not put on the list was Donovan Mitchell’s 71 point outing. The reason I did not include this was because Lillard’s accomplishment was achieved in 4 quarters, while Mitchell’s was achieved including an overtime period. Either way both are very impressive, especially having two 71 point games in the same season.
This season has been really confusing for the Trail Blazers. Damian Lillard is playing at one of the highest level in his whole career. It’s a shame to watch him perform at a high level every game, and the result just keeps on becoming another L after another L. A team who on paper does not look the worst, is just not built for success. Coming off an injury, People thought Dame would regress a bit. This year has been the opposite for Dame as he has expanded his game even more and has solidified himself as a top 3 PG in today's league. Let’s see if the blazers can pull some magic out of them and finish the season strong, but my prediction- they blaze out in the standings and start preparing for the ping pong balls come draft night. Truly a sad and disappointing season, Joe Cronin, the GM of the Trailblazers can do better.
Contributor: Jacob Matthews (@jacob9302)
Editor: Josh Bhagratie (@jshyb_)