For NBA fans of a certain age, Kobe Bryant’s 81-point performance in 2006 has stood as one of the more untouchable modern-day records. But the mark is looking more and more tangible lately, and may not stand for much longer at the rate that scoring is accelerating in the NBA.
With a ridiculous 71-point outing Sunday night, Blazers superstar Damian Lillard was the latest to make Kobe’s mark look attainable. The Portland floor general logged the most efficient game of 70 or more in NBA history, with a true shooting percentage of 80.4%. (This bested the mark that was set by the Cavalier’s Donovan Mitchell’s 78.9% true shooting percentage just last month with his 71-point night.) Making Lillard’s accomplishment even more impressive Sunday: He reached his total without even needing to play a full 40 minutes, making him the first player in league history to ever do that. He was lethal from everywhere, hitting 13 triples—one off the NBA record for a single game—and went 14-for-14 from the line to lift the shorthanded Blazers.
Lillard ignited out of the gate at the Moda Center, hitting four of his first five shot attempts from the floor against the lowly Rockets defense. He’d score 16 in the first quarter en route to a 41-point first half that saw him single-handedly notch eight threes to Houston’s two. The guard cooled off some during a nine-point third quarter, but then exploded for 21 to put the game away in the fourth before subbing out to take a curtain call.
Yes, the Rockets are a straight-up mess defensively—the second-worst unit in basketball from an efficiency standpoint—and have now allowed an NBA-high 13 outings in which an opposing player has scored 40 or more this season. But Lillard wasn’t only making shots where he was inexplicably left open. There were sidesteps, stepbacks and double teams that he split. There were pullups and floaters. There were a number of shots where he was smothered, and ones—like the nasty jam on Jabari Smith Jr.—where he used an impressive burst ability created by the threat of his jumper to get to the cup. Throughout the game, Lillard had everything going.
And it was necessary given that Anfernee Simons and Jusuf Nurkić, the team’s second- and fourth-leading scorers, were out Sunday. (Portland, at 29–31, desperately needs all the wins it can get in hopes of reaching the postseason.) Jerami Grant, the second-leading scorer, pitched in 13 points on 10 shots. But no other Blazer had more than 11 points or six attempts. No other Blazer needed to—Lillard, who finished with six dimes and six boards, dominated enough on his own. It was the fifth time in the 32-year-old’s career that he’s finished with 60 points or more.
With the way things are trending—pace up substantially, rest being provided via load management, five different players averaging 30 points, three-point shooting becoming even more prolific—it’s hard to imagine Bryant’s modern-day mark will stand for too much longer. There are simply too many ways to collect points more quickly than before. It’s unclear whether Lillard himself will be that person. Not only is he the oldest player to ever amass 70 in a game; he’s the only player over the age of 30 to ever get there.
Still, it speaks volumes that Lillard and Mitchell each hit 71 within several weeks of each other, on such astounding efficiency. (Also noteworthy: Lillard had the most efficient 60-point game in NBA history just over a month ago, so he now holds the highest efficiency mark in both 60- and 70-point efforts, with each being set in the same season.) So far, 12 different players have notched a 50-piece this season, and we’re only now restarting play following the All-Star break.
Yet even if these scoring efforts are becoming more commonplace, don’t take Dame’s for granted—particularly as he keeps showcasing unprecedented efficiency.
It’s what’s made him such an entertaining superstar for all these years to begin with.
