If there’s one player who left an indelible mark on NBA single-game scoring, it’s Wilt Chamberlain. On March 2, 1962, Chamberlain pulled off what seemed like an impossible feat by scoring 100 points in a single game. That game, held in Hershey, Pennsylvania, saw Wilt leading the Philadelphia Warriors to a 169-147 victory over the New York Knicks. Imagine dropping 100 points in a single game; that’s more than most players score in three or four games combined. It’s a number so staggering it's basically NBA folklore.
Wilt Chamberlain was one of those unique talents who could do things on the court that others simply couldn’t. Standing at 7 feet 1 inch tall, he wasn’t just a giant in stature but also in the impact. This guy redefined what dominance meant. During the historic night, he made 36 out of 63 field goal attempts and hit 28 free throws out of 32, which is particularly astounding given his career free-throw percentage lingered around 51.1%. That efficiency at the free-throw line was a revelation.
For some context, Michael Jordan, who is often considered the greatest basketball player of all time, never scored more than 69 points in a single game. Kobe Bryant came close but still didn’t match Wilt’s 100-point marvel. Kobe's 81-point game against the Toronto Raptors in 2006 is often regarded as the second-best scoring output, but still, he was 19 points shy. To put it in perspective, Kevin Durant, another prolific scorer, has a career-high of 55 points in a game. That’s still 45 points away from the big 100.
The rules and styles of the game were different during Chamberlain’s era, which spanned from 1959 to 1973. Back then, the game was more focused on interior play, and big men dominated the paint. The three-point line hadn’t been introduced, so all points had to be earned through field goals and free throws within the two-point arc. The pace of the game was also faster. In the 1961-62 season, teams were averaging around 118.8 points per game. To put it in a modern context, the league average for the 2022-2023 season hovered around 112.3 points per game.
Wilt’s performance didn’t just set a benchmark; it threw down a gauntlet. No one has even come close in the decades since. The closest anyone has gotten was Kobe Bryant, and that was still almost two decades ago. Even LeBron James, who seems to break some type of record almost every game, acknowledges that Wilt’s 100 points are probably untouchable. It’s noteworthy that Wilt also holds five of the top 10 highest-scoring games in NBA history. Four other games saw him score 78, 73, 73, and 72 points respectively.
It’s not just that one game that makes Wilt Chamberlain a legend; it’s the body of work that surrounds it. During the 1961-62 season when he set the record, he averaged 50.4 points per game. Let that sink in—50.4 points per game over an entire season. Today, we see elite scorers like James Harden and Stephen Curry put up high numbers, but their scoring averages are in the low 30s. For instance, Harden’s highest season average is 36.1 points per game in 2018-2019. Yet, that’s still over 14 points shy of Wilt’s colossal average.
I’ve read interviews and heard firsthand accounts from players and journalists of that era. The night Wilt scored 100 points is described as euphoric. Broadcasters were flipping out, fans couldn’t believe their eyes, and even his teammates seemed in awe of what was happening. NBA legend Darrall Imhoff, who played for the Knicks, said it felt like playing against a man in a video game cheat mode. People often asked Wilt how he did it, and he would almost nonchalantly say it was just another game. But it wasn’t. It was history being made in real-time.
The game wasn’t televised, so there are no video recordings of the entire match. There's only a radio broadcast and some snippets of footage. In today’s world, where nearly everything gets filmed, it feels almost criminal that one of the greatest sports achievements wasn’t captured on tape. But maybe that adds to the legend. The fact that you can’t see it makes it seem even more mythical.
One aspect that often gets overshadowed is Chamberlain’s stamina. He played all 48 minutes of that game. No resting, no sitting out quarters. Today’s stars like Kawhi Leonard or Joel Embiid often have load management protocols to keep them fresh for the playoffs. Imagine a player today going hard for a full 48 minutes, something that’s become almost unheard of.
People might wonder, "Could anyone ever break this record?" Given the state of the current NBA, it feels unlikely. The game has shifted to be more perimeter-oriented. Players like Damian Lillard, Luka Dončić, and Trae Young are incredibly talented, but the game plan today involves more sharing of the ball and three-point shooting, making it improbable that someone will dominate scoring to that extent over a single game. Highest score in one game NBA doesn’t even seem like a serious question anymore; it’s nearly a rhetorical one.
Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game is more than a record; it’s a testament to his singular talent and the era in which he played. People will continue to chase records, but some benchmarks, like this one, seem to stand the test of time and remain almost mythical in the world of sports.