50th Anniversary of Wilt's 100

[Andrew]

Figured it was worth discussing in its own thread. A couple of interesting articles in honour of the occasion:
Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game made history, but never defined the Hall of Fame center
Wilt Chamberlain: Human And Superhuman

I'm not sure the record will ever be broken, at least not anytime soon, but Kobe's 81 points against the Raptors a few years back does make me think that under the right circumstances, it could be possible. Between the pace of the game and the tendency to rest starters in games that have been decided and avoid padding stats (too much, anyway), it's going to be rare for those circumstances to arise. I think his record of 55 rebounds is the one that's going to be far tougher to break.

[AMenace]

100 points is going to be tough to break, and I doubt that it is possible. These days it is rare that someone scores 50 points in a game, and add to that the best players in the NBA are wanting to play with other stars, so the workload in terms of shots taken is shared around more than what it was back when Wilt scored 100 points. And Andrew makes a good point, starters are rested far more than what they used to be. If say Miami was winning by 15-20 with 4 minutes to go, then Wade, Lebron, Bosh would be sitting the rest of the game out as it is assumed that Miami will win in that situation. Same goes for every other team.

[Sideshow Bob]

These days it is rare that someone scores 50 points in a game,

I wouldn't say its "rare" for a player these days to score 50 pts.

[AMenace]

It happens, but not that often. Maybe I was giving it less chance of happening than it does. Durant has had a 50 point game this season, but it happens once or twice a season, maybe 3 times.

[Mandich]

It happens, but not that often. Maybe I was giving it less chance of happening than it does. Durant has had a 50 point game this season, but it happens once or twice a season, maybe 3 times.

Few players have he balls to go for a 50 point night

[Andrew]

Putting aside the fact that the opportunity isn't there each and every night except perhaps for a select few, it's not always in the team's best interest.