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List of highest-scoring NBA games

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List of highest-scoring NBA games
Summary

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An arena is situated behind an empty parking lot.
McNichols Arena]] in [[Denver]] was the site of the highest-scoring game in NBA history.
An arena is situated behind a road.
Phoenix]] was the site of the highest-scoring playoff game.

In basketball, points are used to keep track of the score in a game. Points can be accumulated by making field goals (worth two points from within the three-point line or three points from beyond the three-point line) or free throws (worth one point). The team that records the most points at the end of a game is declared the game's winner. If the game is still tied at the end of regulation play, additional overtime period(s) are played in order to determine the winner.

In the years following the founding of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1946, teams only averaged around 80 points per game. Before the introduction of the shot clock, teams often ran out the clock by passing the ball more frequently after having established a lead in a game. If one team did choose to stall, the opposing team (especially if behind) would often commit fouls to regain possession. This resulted in very low-scoring games with excessive fouls, which negatively affected attendance. Beginning in the 1954–55 season, the NBA implemented a 24-second shot clock, the aim of which was to speed up the game and create a more entertaining experience for those in attendance. If the offensive team failed to hit the rim with the ball within the allotted 24 seconds, they would lose possession. This innovation resulted in higher average scores. Consequently, all of the highest-scoring games in the NBA have happened during the shot-clock era.

Summary

The highest-scoring regular-season game in NBA history is the triple-overtime game between the Detroit Pistons and the Denver Nuggets on December 13, 1983. The two teams combined to score 370 points, with the Pistons defeating the Nuggets 186–184. An NBA-record four players scored over 40 points in the game, including the Nuggets' Kiki Vandeweghe with a game-high 51. The two teams also set several other NBA records, including the most points scored by one team (186 points), the most points scored by a losing team (184), the most field goals by two teams (142), most field goals by one team (74) and most assists by two teams (93).

The highest-scoring regular season game in regulation was between the Golden State Warriors and the Denver Nuggets on November 2, 1990. In that game, Golden State defeated Denver 162–158. The Warriors' Chris Mullin scored a game-high 38 points. The Nuggets were coached by Doug Moe from 1980 to 1990 and Paul Westhead from 1990 to 1992, both of whom employed a run-and-gun offensive strategy, which focuses on attempting a high number of field goals while also conceding a large number of points on defense. In fact, Moe's and Westhead's Nuggets were participants in four of the ten highest-scoring regular season games in NBA history. The Warriors were coached by Don Nelson from 1988 to 1995 and 2006 to 2010. He employed Nellie Ball, a style of run and gun that uses smaller, more athletic players to outrun opponents. Another notable high-scoring regular season game is a March 2, 1962, game between the Philadelphia Warriors and the New York Knicks. In that game, the Warriors' Wilt Chamberlain scored an NBA-record 100 points.

The highest-scoring playoff game is the double-overtime game between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Phoenix Suns on May 11, 1992. The two teams combined to score 304 points, with the Trail Blazers defeating the Suns 153–151. The Suns' Kevin Johnson scored a game-high 35 points, with 12 other players also scoring in double figures. The highest-scoring playoff game in regulation occurred when the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Denver Nuggets with a score of 152–133 for a combined score of 285 points on April 26, 1983. In that game, the Spurs' George Gervin scored a game-high 42 points.

Most of the highest-scoring games happened before the 1995–96 season, when the average scoring (points per game) per team was always in the 100s. Until the emergence of small ball in 2013, the average had dropped down to the 90s. From 1995 though 2012, only two games made the top-ten lists of both the regular season and playoffs: a May 10, 2003, game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Sacramento Kings and a December 7, 2006, game between the Phoenix Suns and New Jersey Nets. The Mavericks and the Suns were coached by Nelson and Mike D'Antoni respectively, both of whom also made use of the run-and-gun style. The 2018–19 season saw an entry into this list with a quadruple-overtime game between the Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks. The 2022–23 season then saw an entry into this list with the second-highest scoring game in history, a double-overtime game between the Los Angeles Clippers and Sacramento Kings.

List

OT*
Overtime (the number indicates the number of overtime periods played)
Indicates a game that was won by the road team

Highest-scoring regular season games

RankTotal pointsDateLocationWinnerResultOTLoserNotesRef.
1McNichols Arena
Denver, ColoradoDetroit Pistons*186–1843Denver Nuggets
2Crypto.com Arena
Los Angeles, CaliforniaSacramento Kings*176–1752Los Angeles Clippers
3HemisFair Arena
San Antonio, TexasSan Antonio Spurs171–1663Milwaukee Bucks
4329State Farm Arena
Atlanta, GeorgiaChicago Bulls*168–1614Atlanta Hawks
5McNichols Arena
Denver, ColoradoGolden State Warriors*162–158—Denver Nuggets
6McNichols Arena
Denver, ColoradoDenver Nuggets163–155—San Antonio Spurs
Continental Airlines Arena
East Rutherford, New JerseyPhoenix Suns*161–1572New Jersey Nets
8Capital One Arena
Washington, D.C.Houston Rockets*159–158—Washington Wizards
9Hershey Sports Arena
Hershey, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia Warriors169–147—New York Knicks
Cincinnati Gardens
CincinnatiCincinnati Royals165–151—San Diego Rockets
Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Phoenix, ArizonaPhoenix Suns173–143—Denver Nuggets

Highest-scoring playoff games

RankTotal
pointsDateLocationWinnerResultOTLoserNotesRef.
1, 1992Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Phoenix, ArizonaPortland Trail Blazers*153–1512Phoenix Suns
2, 2021Ball Arena
Denver, ColoradoDenver Nuggets147–1402Portland Trail Blazers
3, 1983HemisFair Arena
San Antonio, TexasSan Antonio Spurs152–133—Denver Nuggets
, 1990Boston Garden
Boston, MassachusettsBoston Celtics157–128—New York Knicks
5, 1987Reunion Arena
Dallas, TexasDallas Mavericks151–129—Seattle SuperSonics
6, 1967Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena
Oakland, CaliforniaSan Francisco Warriors143–136—St. Louis Hawks
7, 1957Minneapolis Auditorium
Minneapolis, MinnesotaSt. Louis Hawks*143–1352Minneapolis Lakers
, 2003ARCO Arena
Sacramento, CaliforniaDallas Mavericks*141–1372Sacramento Kings
9, 1985The Forum
Inglewood, CaliforniaLos Angeles Lakers147–130—Phoenix Suns
, 2019Moda Center
Portland, OregonPortland Trail Blazers140–1374Denver Nuggets

Notes

References

General

Specific

References

  1. "Basketball glossary". FIBA.com.
  2. "NBA League Averages". basketball-reference.com.
  3. Goldstein, Richard. (December 25, 2004). "In 1954, Shot Clock Revived a Stalled N.B.A.". The New York Times.
  4. (October 22, 2001). "History of the Shot Clock". NBA.com.
  5. Maxwell, John. "Highest Scoring Game Ever". Turner Sports Interactive.
  6. Neel, Eric. (December 13, 2005). "The big score". ESPN.com.
  7. "Doug Moe". basketball-reference.com.
  8. "Paul Westhead". basketball-reference.com.
  9. Newman, Bruce. (November 7, 1988). "This Joker Is Wild".
  10. Berkow, Ira. (November 15, 1990). "The Nutty Numbers for The Nuggets". The New York Times.
  11. "Don Nelson". basketball-reference.com.
  12. Jenkins, Lee. (May 13, 2007). "Nellie Ball Energizes Warriors and Confounds Opponents". The New York Times.
  13. Sandomir, Richard. (March 1, 2012). "50th Anniversary of a Scoring Feat That's as Much Legend as Record". The New York Times.
  14. Bothamley, Dylan. "Fastbreaks: Back to the Future". 82games.com.
  15. Beck, Howard. (May 13, 2008). "Want to Play for D'Antoni? Start Running". The New York Times.
  16. Johnson, Roy S.. (December 13, 1983). "The Great Denver Shootout". The New York Times.
  17. "Detroit Pistons at Denver Nuggets Box Score, December 13, 1983". basketball-reference.com.
  18. (December 15, 2024). "Mavericks, Warriors set single-game NBA record with 48 combined 3-pointers".
  19. (February 24, 2023). "Kings vs Clippers {{!}} NBA Game Summary". ESPN.com.
  20. "Milwaukee Bucks at San Antonio Spurs Box Score, March 6, 1982". basketball-reference.com.
  21. "Chicago Bulls at Atlanta Hawks Box Score, March 1, 2019". basketball-reference.com.
  22. "Golden State Warriors at Denver Nuggets Box Score, November 2, 1990". basketball-reference.com.
  23. "Regular Season Records: Points". Turner Sports Interactive.
  24. "San Antonio Spurs at Denver Nuggets Box Score, January 11, 1984". basketball-reference.com.
  25. "Phoenix Suns at New Jersey Nets Box Score, December 7, 2006". basketball-reference.com.
  26. (30 October 2019). "Wednesday will be a battle of D.C. vs. Houston sports".
  27. "Houston Rockets at Washington Wizards Box Score, October 30, 2019". basketball-reference.com.
  28. "Philadelphia Warriors vs New York Knicks Box Score, March 2, 1962". basketball-reference.com.
  29. "San Diego Rockets at Cincinnati Royals Box Score, March 12, 1970". basketball-reference.com.
  30. "Denver Nuggets at Phoenix Suns Box Score, November 10, 1990". basketball-reference.com.
  31. "Portland Trail Blazers at Phoenix Suns Box Score, May 11, 1992". basketball-reference.com.
  32. Stapleton, Arnie. (June 2, 2021). "Nuggets beat Blazers 147-140 in 2OT, Lillard scores 55". The Associated Press.
  33. "2021 NBA Western Conference First Round Game 5: Portland Trail Blazers at Denver Nuggets Box Score, June 1, 2021". basketball-reference.com.
  34. "Denver Nuggets at San Antonio Spurs Box Score, April 26, 1983". basketball-reference.com.
  35. "New York Knicks at Boston Celtics Box Score, April 28, 1990". basketball-reference.com.
  36. "Seattle SuperSonics at Dallas Mavericks Box Score, April 23, 1987". basketball-reference.com.
  37. "St. Louis Hawks at San Francisco Warriors Box Score, April 1, 1967". basketball-reference.com.
  38. "St. Louis Hawks at Minneapolis Lakers Box Score, March 25, 1957". basketball-reference.com.
  39. "Dallas Mavericks at Sacramento Kings Box Score, May 10, 2003". basketball-reference.com.
  40. "Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Lakers Box Score, April 20, 1985". basketball-reference.com.
  41. "Denver Nuggets at Portland Trail Blazers Box Score, May 3, 2019". basketball-reference.com.
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