Tomorrow marks the fifth anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s 81-point performance, which still stands as the second-highest, single-game point total in NBA history. Kobe was certainly on the heater on that record-setting night as he singlehandedly took control of the game to help his Los Angeles Lakers beat the Toronto Raptors. Here’s a look at Kobe’s ridiculous stat line from January 22, 2006:
- 26 first half points
- 55 second half points
- 28 of 46 from the field (60.8%)
- 7 of 13 from 3-point range (53.8%)
- 18 of 20 from the foul line (90%)
- accounted for 66.4% of the Lakers’ total points (122)
Since that night, only one NBA player has cracked the 60-point barrier, and that man is Kobe. He has done it three times since then, most recently on February 2, 2009 when he dropped 61 on the Knicks. His five career games with 60+ points put him in a tie with Michael Jordan for the most all time, behind Wilt Chamberlain’s 32.
Love him or hate him, Kobe is undoubtedly the greatest NBA player of the post-Michael Jordan era, and was easily the league’s most prolific scorer of the past decade. His penchant for scoring has been unmatched, even with a host of young talent entering the league over that time.
If groups of superstars continue to join forces, like we’ve seen in Miami and Boston, will we ever see a prolific scorer like Kobe in the NBA again? Only time will tell, but for the time being, no one is coming close.
What about Lebron and Kevin Durant you say? Durant has yet to break the 50 point barrier in his four year career, and Lebron is nearly six years removed from his career high of 56 points in March of 2005. At this point, at least, Kobe remains in a league of his own.
