There have been 62 games in the NBA in which a player scored 60 or more points. To date, 20 NBA players have scored 60 or more points in a game. Obviously, some players have accomplished the feat on more than one occasion. These are all the NBA players who have scored 60 or more points in a game.
As you will see from this list, only great players score 60 or more points in a NBA game. There are plenty of NBA players who have scored 50 or more points in a game who will never be in the Basketball Hall of Fame. There are only two players who have scored 60 points in a NBA game who are eligible but not in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
One of the players is likely to be enshrined one day, while the other player scored over 20,000 points in the NBA. More on the two players below.
NBA players who have scored 60 or more points in a game
1. Wilt Chamberlain - 32 times scored 60 or more points in a game
Wilt Chamberlain scored 60 or more points in a NBA game an amazing 32 times. Easily the most by any player. Wilt, of course, holds the NBA record for most points in a game with 100.
Wilt Chamberlain scored 70 or more points in a game a record six times in his career. So Wilt Chamberlain scored between 60 and 69 points in a game 26 times.
In his career, Wilt Chamberlain scored 100, 78, 73 (twice), 72, and 70 points in a game. Wilt also scored 68, 67 (four times), 66, 65 (three times), 63 (twice), 62 (six times), 61 (six times), and 60 (three times) points in a game.
2. Michael Jordan - 6 times scored 60 or more points in a game
Michael Jordan scored 60 or more points in a game six times, which is the second most times in NBA history. Jordan scored 69, 64, 63, and 61 (twice) points in regular season NBA games.
Michael Jordan also scored a record 63 points in a playoff game, for six games of 60 or more points in the NBA.
T-3. Kobe Bryant - 5 times
Kobe Bryant scored 60 or more points in a NBA game the third most times. That includes Kobe's 81 point game, which is the second highest amount of points ever scored by a player in a NBA game.
Kobe Bryant also had games of 65, 62, 61, and 60 points in the NBA. All of Kobe's 60 or more point games were in the regular season.
T-3. Elgin Baylor - 5 times
Elgin Baylor is tied with Kobe Bryant for third place among players who have scored 60 or more points in a NBA game. Baylor scored 71 points in a game, which is the eighth most points ever scored by a player in a NBA game.
Elgin Baylor also scored 64, 63, and 61 points in regular season games. In addition, Elgin Baylor scored 61 points in a playoff game in 1962, which is the second most points ever scored by a player in a playoff game.
The rest of the players on this list each had one game in which they scored 60 or more points. I'm ranking them by the total points they actually scored.
5. David Thompson - 73 points
6. David Robinson - 71 points
7. Pete Maravich - 68 points
8. Rick Barry - 64 points
T-9. Joe Fulks - 63 points
T-9. Jerry West - 63 points
T-9. George Gervin - 63 points
12. Tracy McGrady - 62 points
T-13. George Mikan - 61 points
T-13. Karl Malone - 61 points
T-13. Shaquille O'Neal - 61 points
T-16. Bernard King - 60 points
T-16. Larry Bird - 60 points
T-16. Tom Chambers - 60
T-16. Allen Iverson - 60 points
T-16. Gilbert Arenas - 60 points
The two players who have scored 60 points in a NBA game who are eligible for the Basketball Hall of Fame but not in are Bernard King and Tom Chambers.
Bernard King has the 25th highest scoring average in NBA history at 22.5 points per game. He also won a scoring title in 1985, and he averaged 25.8 points and 13.2 rebounds per game in college at Tennessee. Bernard King is almost certain to be enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame one day.
Tom Chambers will probably never get into the Basketball Hall of Fame. But he did score 20,049 points in the NBA, and averaged 18.1 points per game.
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