Michael Jordan is one of the best scorers in the history of the NBA. Here are five of the best scoring performances from his career.
Follow Us
Michael Jordan is regarded by many as one of the best basketball players in the history of the game. He is a sporting icon that has had a long-lasting impact on the game. His athleticism and competitive attitude helped him achieve almost every laurel in the NBA. “His Airness’ had all the tricks in his armory. At 6 feet 6, he was one of the toughest players to guard in the league.
His ability to breeze his way past opponents and make tough shots gave him the advantage over many ace defenders. In a career spanning over 19 years, Michael Jordan won a whooping ten scoring titles. This in itself is a testament to how great he was when every time he stepped on the floor. Undoubtedly, stopping him when he got going was something that no one could do. On some nights, he would just take over the game and from there on there was no chance for the opponents to come back. In today’s article, we talk about the give highest-scoring games of Michael Jordan’s career.
Michael Jordan faced some of the toughest teams in the league during the late 80s’ and the 90s’. However, there was one team that always gave him a tough time and that was the Detroit Pistons. Led by Isaiah Thomas, the Pistons were a merciless defensive unit. However, “His Airness’ loved to compete amidst adversity. In a game against the Bad Boy Pistons in 1987, MJ showed the world what he was truly capable of.
He scored 61 points and shot 22-39 from the field. The six-time champion also grabbed 7 rebounds and secured a 125-120 win for the Bulls. The Pistons gave in a tough fight as Isaiah Thomas and Adrian Dantley combined to score 62 points, but it was not enough to stop the Bulls.
The 1986-87 season was a special one for Michael Jordan. It was the first time that he won the scoring title and from there on, he continued his dominance and bagged the award nine more times. Just a month after scoring 61 points against the Pistons, Jordan racked 61 against the in-form Atlanta Hawks team. He shot 22-38 from the field and grabbed 10 boards on the night. However, this time Jordan ended up on the losing side as he did not get much support from his teammates. Dominique Wilkins, Kevin Willis and Antoine Carr combined to score 74 points to help the Hawks get to a narrow 117-114 win on the night.
Read More: Top 5 highest scoring performances in an NBA game
Michael Jordan did not fear any opponent in front of him. He did what he knew every night, which was wreck havoc on opponents each time stepped floor on an NBA floor. A testament to that was his 63-point performance against the Boston Celtics in the first round of the 1986 playoffs. In just his second year in the league, Jordan went off against a legendary Celtics team that had the likes of Larry Bird and Kevin McHale. He shot 22-41 from the field and looked unstoppable. Despite his best effort, the Bulls fell short on the night as Bird led the Celtics to a 135-31 win and a 2-0 lead in the series.
Jordan was at his very best during both of the Bulls’ three-peat runs. He added some more muscle and this helped him score inside the paint with ease. In a game against the Orlando Magic team during the 1992-93 season, MJ once again proved how dangerous he could be when he got going. “His Airness” went off and scored 64 points in just 47 minutes for the Bulls. The opposition had a center like Shaquille Neal on the team, but that was not going to prevent Jordan from causing carnage. Even with Jordan’s heroics, the Bulls fell short against a talented Magic team. The game went into overtime and over there, the team from Orlando somehow edged out a narrow 128-124 win
Michael Jordan’s best scoring performance in the NBA came against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The six-time champ had arguably the best night of his career. He was everywhere on the floor as he not only scored 69 points, but also helped out the team by grabbing 18 rebounds. The Cavs had a tough time trying to stop him as he shot 62.1% from the field. Despite delivering his best night, the team from Cleveland managed to drag the game into overtime. But Jordan was determined to lead the Bulls to a win on the night. He stepped up and made some clutch free throws to help Chicago get to a 117-113 win.
