How Many 70-Point Games Are in NBA History? Revisiting ‘Legendary’ List as Joel Embiid Breaks Wilt Chamberlain’s Record

The Philadelphia 76ers hosted the San Antonio Spurs in their most recent matchup at home, where the fans got to witness history being made when reigning MVP Joel Embiid went off for a 70-point game. As the 76ers defeated the Spurs with a 133-123 scoreline, Embiid scored 70 points, 18 rebounds and 5 assists. The numbers are insane, to say the least, and are rarely seen in the NBA. However, this isn’t the first time, the league saw a 70-point game. So you might wonder, how many 70-point games are in NBA history? Let’s find out. 

Embiid’s performance against the San Antonio Spurs was a sight to see. The 6x All-Star became the ninth player in NBA history to reach the 70-point mark, leaving many to question about all the 70+ point performances. In total, there have been 10 players who registered 70+ in NBA. 

In total, there have been 15 instances when a 70-point or more of a game has been recorded. Basketball fans got to witness two 70-point games last season from Damian Lillard and Donovan Mitchell. Dame was the last player to enter this rare stat list when he scored 71 points, sinking 13 three-pointers on the way to his total score. What fans found hilarious was the drug test that followed afterwards.

Before Lillard, Donovan Mitchell caught the world off guard with his 70-point performance merely a month ago. Mitchell not only led his team to victory in overtime but also set the record for most points in a game in Cavaliers history. There was a 70-point game that Devin Booker churned out once while playing against the Boston Celtics. Despite it being one of the biggest nights for Booker, his performance was eventually overshadowed by the Celtics winning that game.

The most recent name to join the elite list is Luka Doncic. The Mavericks star went on to drop 73 points with an insane 25-33 from the field against the Atlanta Hawks.

But before all this came one of the most historic performances of modern-day basketball. Kobe Bryant’s 81-point game against the Toronto Raptors shaped young minds to achieve something iconic to what The Black Mamba did that day.

All the 70-point or more games before that are from NBA legends who have been retired for decades. One interesting stat is that Wilt Chamberlain is the only player in NBA history to have multiple 70-point or more games with 6.

Joel Embiid’s historic night

Embiid’s entire performance against the San Antonio Spurs was somewhat of an old-school masterpiece. Embiid achieved the 70-point total with just one three-pointer while the remaining points came from the paint, mid-range, and the free throw line.

Embiid shot a total of 41 shots from the field, sinking 24 of them, bringing his field goal percentage to 58.5. He also shot 23 free throws in total, making 21 of them with a 91.3 free throw percentage for the game.

Joel Embiid became the first player to reach the 70-point mark this season. He also went on to break Wilt Chamberlain’s record for most points scored in a single game in the history of the Philadelphia 76ers franchise. Before Embiid’s 70-point game, Chamberlain’s record stood at 68 against the Chicago Bulls on December 16, 1967.

If having a 70-point game and setting the new franchise record wasn’t enough for Embiid then being in the same category with just Michael Jordan had Joel Embiid over the moon after the game.

JoJo joked about Wilt not achieving that stat line but was visibly taken aback when he found out the only player to achieve what he did tonight was the very icon of the game of basketball. It’ll be interesting to see if Embiid can keep his form and lead the 76ers to more wins and hopefully, an NBA title as well.