RELATIVE TO CONTEXT, who has highest-scoring game in history?
Is it Wilt's 100 in 1962?
But he played 48 MP in that game in a NBA averaging 118.8 per game.

So is it:
Kobe w/ 81 in 97.0 NBA in 2006?
Joe Fulks w/ 63 in 80.0 NBA in 1949?
Klay T w/ 60 in only 29 MP in 2016?

1/x

To determine the highest-scoring game RELATIVE TO CONTEXT, I examined the 72 NBA games when a player scored 60 points or more.

The rest of this thread analyzes these 72 games of 60 in several different ways.

2/x

Best scoring games in context

THREAD

@LeaguePasshole
@thenicktripoli
@datafox21
@MikanFanClubCEO
@GameExamined
@LeShrek_
@BangoBucksFan
@CasualBullsFan
@SucksMvp
@GreekGodofStats

3/x

Top 11 games all-time:

100 Wilt
81 Kobe
78 Wilt
73 David Thompson
73 Wilt
73 Wilt
72 Wilt
71 David Robinson
71 Elgin Baylor
70 Devin Booker
70 Wilt

4/x

PTS/48 MP:
100.0 Wilt Chamberlain
99.3 Klay Thompson
92.9 James Harden
92.6 Kobe Bryant
91.6 George Gervin
90.2 Kobe Bryant
88.7 Karl Malone
81.5 David Thompson
79.1 James Harden
79.1 Kobe Bryant

Wilt's 100 still # 1. But only time in top 16 for P/48.
Klay right behind!

5/x

PTS adjusted to all-time NBA median of 105.0:

88.4 Wilt
87.7 Kobe
82.7 Joe Fulks (1949)
77.4 George Mikan (1952)
73.4 David Robinson
70.6 David Thompson
69.7 Tracy McGrady
69.6 Devin Booker
69.1 Kobe
68.9 Wilt

Wilt's 100 (1962) and Kobe's 81 (2006) still on top.

6/x

PTS as a % of team's PTS in the game:
67% George Mikan
66% Kobe Bryant
63% David Robinson
63% Wilt (100 pt)
59% Kobe Bryant
59% Wilt
59% Michael Jordan
58% Devin Booker
58% Joe Fulks
58% Elgin Baylor

Mikan (1952) & Fulks (1949) top 10.
Kobe's 81 (2006) is 2nd.

7/x

PTS as a % of OPPONENT's PTS in the game:
78% Kobe
75% Mikan
73% David Robinson
72% Fulks
69% Kobe Bryant
68% Wilt (100 pt)
66% Wilt
66% Elgin Baylor
65% Carmelo Anthony
64% Pete Maravich

Kobe's 81 is # 1. He also has a top-5 from same season.
Mikan & Fulks in top 4.

8/x

PTS as a % of OPPONENT's PTS, based on PER MINUTE:

100% Kobe
94% Klay
92% Karl Malone
89% Kobe
84% Harden
80% David Robinson
79% Carmelo Anthony
75% Harden
74% Joe Fulks
72% Tom Chambers

Kobe's 81 MATCHED his opponent's P/48MP! A one-man team!
Hardn 2x in top 10 w/in last yr!

Highest TS% in 60-point game:
.879 James Harden
.844 Karl Malone
.797 LeBron James
.793 Klay Thompson
.791 James Harden
.787 Carmelo Anthony
.780 David Thompson
.769 Wilt Chamberlain
.766 Kobe Bryant
.764 Kemba Walker

"Harden is inefficient." Smh.
Wilt was once 29-35!

10/x

Gunner list: Most TSA/48MP
(TSA formula includes 2FGA, 3FGA, & FTA):

1.75 George Gervin
1.61 Wilt (100 pt)
1.39 Wilt
1.32 Fulks
1.32 Kobe (last game of career)
1.31 Wilt
1.30 Klay
1.30 Kobe (81 pt)
1.29 Wilt
1.27 Kobe

Last day of 1978, Gervin went crazy to win scoring title.

Jordan and LeBron:

Games over 60 points:
MJ 69 (1990)
MJ 64 (1993)
MJ 61 (1987)
MJ 61 (1987)

LBJ 61 (2014)

12/x

PTS adjusted to 48 MP & median league context of 105.0 P/G:

100.2 Kobe (81 in 42 MP in 2006)
98.7 Klay (60 in 29 MP)
97.6 Kobe
88.7 Gervin
88.7 Harden (2019-20)
88.4 Wilt (100 pt)
87.1 Karl Malone
84.4 Joe Fulks
83.1 Kobe
80.1 David Robinson
79.3 Carmelo Anthony

Kobe #1 (& 3)!

Wilt was an all-time-great scorer.
He scored 60 in a game 32x! Everybody else did it a total of 40x.

Wilt has 15 of top 24 highest-scoring games all-time.

But 24 of these games occurred in two very high-scoring seasons, 1962 & 63. He also averaged 48.5 & 47.6 MP/G those years.

After adjusting for MP & league context:
Wilt has only 1 of the top 29 scoring games.
Only his 100 pt game is in top 29.

His triple-overtime game (78 in 63 MP in 1961-62) is 3rd highest ever in raw points.
But it's 67th (!) adjusted for MP & league context.

15/15