Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points on March 2, 1962. This is an NBA record and is considered one of the most unbreakable achievements in all of sports. Kobe Bryant was second on the single-game scoring list for a long time, as he scored 81 points on February 22, 2006. No one thought that this figure would also be crossed. Bam Adebayo did the unthinkable on March 10, 2026, dropping 83 points.
The Miami Heat center is a great player and one of the best in the league. However, he is far from the first player that fans would have guessed could have such an insane scoring game. In fact, Adebayo is probably more known for his defensive ability, and his career high was just 41 points before scoring 83 points.
The point is, if Adebayo can score 83 points, there are definitely other players who can surpass the 80-point threshold in the modern NBA. Perhaps Chamberlain's 100-point record is not as secure as previously thought. So, which NBA players are most likely to score more than 80 points in a game in the next one?
Stephen Curry has a career high of 62 points. He's an all-time great and arguably the best point guard of all time, but in reality, he's probably past his peak. Because of that, since he has yet to score even 70 points in a game, he may not be able to do so at some point in the future. Still, the mathematics behind his game needs to be included in this list.
Curry is the best 3-point shooter in NBA history. Fans have seen him go hot many times before, and his 4,233 3-pointers in his career are 891 more than second place. Curry doesn't just make wide-open ones. He gets up and makes shots from beyond the arc, and he can intercept long bombs off speed and go off balance to the point where defenders can't really guard him; They just have to pray he misses.
Even at the age of 37, fans can expect a lot more amazing shooting performances from Curry, and perhaps he can take it to the next level after seeing Adebayo's performance. It helps Curry's case that he is more than just an outside shooter. He can get anywhere on the court with one of the best handles in NBA history, and he is well known for making circus shots, which will definitely help his 80-point goal. Curry has previously mentioned playing in a flow state, and if he just focused on scoring on the night he was unconscious, he could have scored 80 points.
Although they didn't make this list, Joel Embiid, Damian Lillard and Donovan Mitchell have all crossed the 70-point threshold before, so they shouldn't be counted out of scoring 80 points in a day. Anthony Edwards is already one of the best scorers in the league, and Nikola Jokic deserves praise as well.
While Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made a stronger claim than ever as the best player in the NBA by hitting the game-winning shot over the Denver Nuggets on March 9, Jokic is still viewed as the unanimous best player in basketball nearly half a decade on. Part of what makes him great is that he's the best passing big man ever, and his unselfish nature will likely keep him from scoring 80 points. However, Jokic's touch is unmatched.
He can punch his way under 80 points while hitting deep shots as one of the NBA's best 3-point shooting bigs, while hitting one-legged slingshot somber shuffles that leave defenders with their hands over their faces in frustration. Again, Jokic's passing ability means an 80-point performance is unlikely, but he may have the skill set to achieve it if he ever wants to, and a fellow center scoring 83 points in Adebayo only creates more realism for this possibility.
Curry's former teammate Kevin Durant is also one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. In fact, many fans have voted him the greatest pure scorer of all time, with NBA GOAT Michael Jordan being the only player to give him a run for his money. Durant is reported to be 6 feet 9 inches tall, but in reality, he may be closer to 7 feet.
Despite this, there is no shot that Durant cannot make, which makes him truly vulnerable. He can score from mid-range, with his back to the basket, or from beyond the 3-point arc, and he hasn't really stepped back since tearing his Achilles. Surprisingly, Durant has never even scored 60 points in a game.
His career-high in terms of scoring is just 55 points, as he has always focused on efficiency and never just conceded jack up shots. However, that doesn't mean he isn't one of the most likely players to score 80 points in a game. If Durant ever changes his mentality and wants to score as many points as possible, he has the scoring nature to go crazy, and there are not many players who can guard him.
In the event that Durant surpassed his career highs and defenses began to find a way to slow him down, he became too fast for the big men to guard him, and he could make his shot above most guards and wings. Durant's 80-point game would be surprising considering he's never gotten that close to that mark before, but it would be far less surprising than when Adebayo did it.
Devin Booker has been responsible for several all-time high-scoring games during his career. The most memorable thing is that the Phoenix Suns guard scored 70 points in 2017. His team wasn't very good back then, which led to the Kentucky product getting the final nod. Sixty-plus, 70-plus, and now, 80-plus point scoring games were not as common then as they are becoming more so now, however, which required Booker to imitate Chamberlain and demonstrate his high scoring output in pencil on a piece of paper in the locker room after the game.
Booker is still an elite scorer after all these years. He is averaging 24.9 points per game this year due to an excellent mid-range shot and ability to go downhill and score in the painted area. Over the last few years, it didn't seem like Booker would be able to surpass his own 70-point game, let alone score 80 points a night. This was because he shared the court with the aforementioned Durant as well as Bradley Beal.
Now with those two gone, Booker has a clear mandate to be the top option in Phoenix. The rest of his team is filled with serious role players who don't mind doing the dirty work, so it's not hard to imagine a game in which Booker takes a high volume of shots while his teammates do their best to create extra possessions and get him open looks.
Adebayo fell short of Chamberlain's single-game scoring record, but he followed up several iconic performances by dropping 83 points on the Washington Wizards. Of course, there was Bryant's aforementioned 81-point performance, but Chamberlain also had another iconic scoring game in which he scored 78 points. Adebayo also beat Luka Doncic's 73-point performance to tie for fifth all-time.
Doncic has proven he can get close to scoring 80 points. He has a methodical style of play that is difficult to defend. Doncic gets up and makes shots from beyond the 3-point arc, and his step-back is one of the best moves in basketball. He also has some of the best touches in the league. Doncic currently leads the NBA in scoring with 32.5 points per game.
Additionally, LeBron James is nearing retirement, and once one of the greatest players in NBA history is retired, there will be even more shots for Doncic. Then again, maybe the Slovenian star will get to 80 points before his partner in crime retires. After all, James is an incredible playmaker who demands attention on defense, which will make life easier on Doncic.
There is no denying that Victor Vembanyama is the future of the NBA. The French star, who plays for the San Antonio Spurs, stands 7 feet 4 inches tall. On the one hand, this has quickly made him one of the best defenders in the NBA, and he could take home Defensive Player of the Year awards on a consistent basis.
However, Vembanyama is also a unicorn when it comes to crime. Despite his size, Vembanyama has guard-like skills. He can hit step-back jumpers, put the ball on the floor and create rebounds, and hit fadeaways and turnarounds. Of course, Vembanyama's size allows him to score inside with ease, as he barely has to try to dunk over anyone.
It's going to be a night where Vembanyama will have serious mismatches and opposing teams will be unable to stop him. In that case, Vembanyama could potentially score 80 points, which would indicate that the future is now.
The defending MVP is on his way to winning his second consecutive award for being the best player in the NBA after his elite performance in which he scored 35 points en route to hitting the game-winner against the Nuggets. Gilgeous-Alexander is in his fourth consecutive season averaging more than 30 points per game.
He led the league with 32.7 points per game last year and his 31.7 points per game this year are the second-most. If the Oklahoma City Thunder did not have the deepest rotation in the league, one has to imagine this figure would be much higher. The Thunder have 13 or 14 players who can be in each team's 10-man rotation, which means there are plenty of players to feed off. If Gilgeous-Alexander plays on a bad team, it's not hard to imagine him averaging 40 points per game, and it's almost less hard to imagine him scoring 80 points in a single game.
The MVP can really score whatever he wants. He has a reliable 3-point shot and is one of the best middies in the league. He probably scores better at the rim than any other guard, and he gets to the free throw line more often. If anyone is going to score 80 points again, or potentially even try to surpass Adebayo's historic performance, it will surely be Gilgeous-Alexander.
