Basketball, above most other sports, shows a night in and night out that it is a team sport. A very little amount of individual brilliance can outshine a good team. And we have seen this play out on the court on numerous occasions.
So many players in the NBA have seen their individual efforts wiped away because they were up against a team that was much better than their own. While we have seen several NBA stars who are capable of changing a game from their own talents, these performances rarely result in a win when going up against a solid team.
Players like Michael Jordan and LeBron James have experienced this throughout their careers. While their own individual talent was once-in-a-generation, their teams were not good enough to complement their talents enough to overcome the opposing teams that were better than them.
But which players have experienced this the most? Below is the list of players with the most 30+ points performances in losses in NBA history. Wilt Chamberlain tops the list with 202 games, followed by Michael Jordan with 165, Oscar Robertson with 156, Kobe Bryant with 151, and LeBron James with 142.
NBA fans reacted to this information, mostly noting how incredible Wilt Chamberlains’ games were. Chamberlain had a lead over Michael Jordan by almost 40 games, a truly incredible stats.
Top 5 Players With Most 30+ Point Games In Losses
Wilt Chamberlain: 202 games
Michael Jordan: 165 games
Oscar Robertson: 156 games
Kobe Bryant: 151 games
LeBron James: 142 games
The best example of this can be seen in the 2007 NBA Finals. LeBron James was able to galvanize a mediocre Cleveland Cavaliers squad, and take them to the finals. But LeBron wasn’t able to overcome a strong San Antonio Spurs team that had 3 superstars and a solid rotation of role players.
Players have to work extremely hard in order to perform well. But those flashes of individual talent get wiped away if the rest of the team doesn’t deliver on their own responsibilities.
