NBA History: 5 players with the most 50-point games as of August 2021

James Harden is one of the players in the NBA with the most 50+ point games.
James Harden is one of the players in the NBA with the most 50+ point games.

#3 Kobe Bryant - 26 50-point NBA games

The LA Lakers honor Kobe Bryant by spotlighting his jerseys.
The LA Lakers honor Kobe Bryant by spotlighting his jerseys.

Kobe Bryant played in the NBA for 20 years, and in period, he accumulated 26 50-point games. He has the second-highest tally of points scored in a single game following his 81-point explosion against the Toronto Raptors in 2006.

Bryant played for the same franchise throughout his 20-year career. He was selected by the LA Lakers in the 1996 NBA Draft, and played for them till his retirement in 2016.

In the final game of his career, Bryant registered 60 points against the Utah Jazz. His No. 8 and No. 24 jerseys hang from the rafters in Staples Center.


#2 Michael Jordan - 39 50-point NBA games

Michael Jordan (#23) of the Chicago Bulls
Michael Jordan (#23) of the Chicago Bulls

It is near impossible not to find Michael Jordan in most record lists in the NBA. To date, he remains the most popular basketball player worldwide.

MJ was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1984 as the third overall pick behind Hakeem Olajuwon and Sam Bowie. However, it was Jordan who turned out to be the poster boy for the NBA.

Even with several breaks in his career, Jordan always made a comeback in a big way. Although he was active for only 15 years, he led the Bulls to six NBA championships, and had 39 50-point games.

Jordan was a menace at both ends of the floor, as he was an efficient scorer and made stops in defense. For seven consecutive seasons, he led the league in scoring, while averaging 30+ points in each campaign.


#1 Wilt Chamberlain - 122 50-point NBA games

Although Wilt Chamberlain does not top the NBA's all-time points leaderboard, he is the most effective scorer in the history of the league. As stated earlier, he holds the record for the most points scored in a single game, with exactly 100.

Considering how easy scoring was for Chamberlain, he successfully registered 122 50-point games during his 14-year career. He played for the Harlem Globetrotters for a year before he was selected by the then Philadelphia Warriors in the 1959 NBA draft.

As far as records go, Wilt Chamberlain is the only player in the NBA who has averaged over 40 and 50 points in a season. He also led the league in rebounds for a record 11 seasons, averaging at least 18 rebounds per season throughout his career.

The Big Dipper was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978, and has his No. 13 jersey retired by all franchises he played for, including the Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers and LA Lakers.

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