Today is the 50th anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game, which still to this day stands as the most points ever scored by a single-player in an NBA game. Many great scorers have come and gone and the closest to come to Wilt’s 100 was Kobe Bryant who scored 81 points in 2006.
The majority of NBA players today believe that no one will ever reach the century mark, but one player does in fact see that record being surpassed. Kobe, the same person who came just 19 points away from Wilt, believes that a player down the road will reach the magical triple digits.
“I think in time that day will come,” Bryant said. “Somebody will do it, eventually it’s going to happen.”
Kobe’s 81 points topped career-highs of legendary players like Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, and was the most points ever scored in a televised game.
Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 point game was not caught on tape and there is no photograph of him in action. The only picture we have is Wilt smiling in the Sixers’ locker-room, holding up a sign which simply states ‘100.’
In today’s world, a 100-point game would put the sports world in a frenzy. Twitter would have exploded and sports shows would be replaying the game countless times. There would be highlights of every point and you can be sure that the historic night would be relived for months and months.
If Kobe is right about another player scoring 100 points, it will go done as perhaps the greatest moment in NBA history. Although the game maybe a regular season game against a sub-par team, reaching triple-digits is absolutely amazing. Chamberlain’s night was not as cherished as it should be due to relatively smaller media demands, but if it happens again in today’s age, diplomats will be talking about the game.
Bryant scored 81 points on that January night, and there were definitely moments when he had thoughts of surpassing the Big Dipper and his seemingly ‘untouchable’ record.
