As the old saying goes, records are meant to be broken. But just because they were meant to be broken doesn’t mean they will be. Every sport has records that will be virtually impossible to break unless the way the game is played changes drastically. Of course, the NBA is no exception to that, which is why we thought it’d be fun to look at some of the NBA records that nobody will ever break.
Wilt Chamberlain, 50.4 points per game
For starters, there aren’t many players in the history of the game who were as good as Chamberlain. Most nights, he was simply too much for the players trying to guard him.
Second of all, great teams have at least two or three players who share the load when it comes to scoring, making it hard to envision anybody getting close to 50 points per game over a full season. James Harden reaching 36 points per game during the 2018-19 season is close to maxing out what’s realistic in the NBA today.
A.C. Green, 1,192 consecutive games played
It feels like not enough people talk about Green as the Cal Ripken of the NBA. His consistency and longevity over nearly 2,000 games are truly remarkable.
With the way players need their rest these days, it’s laughable to think anyone will play every single game for nearly 15 straight seasons.
Los Angeles Lakers, 33 straight wins
The 1971-72 Lakers were truly something special. They were led by Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West, but the supporting cast wasn’t bad either. Frankly, there are too many good teams in the NBA nowadays to think that even the league’s best team can win 33 in a row.
Consider that when the Bulls went 72-10, they never won more than 18 in a row. In fairness, the Warriors got to 28 straight a few years ago. But that was over two seasons and is a feat any modern team will struggle to replicate.
Cal Bowdler, 7 personal fouls in a game
Obviously, this was an anomaly because the scorekeeper made a mistake by not disqualifying Bowdler after six fouls. Nevertheless, it’s a record that will never be broken because there are too many people keeping track of every little detail in games nowadays.
There’s no way a player could commit six fouls without 12 people shouting for him to leave the game.
Scott Skiles, 30 assists in one game
Have you watched the NBA? Nobody passes the ball enough to get to 30 assists. Even the great John Stockton never had more than 28.
In fairness, Rajon Rondo got to 25 a few years ago with Russell Westbrook reaching 24 once. But a player would have to purposely go after the record to top 30 assists in a game.
John Stockton, 15,806 career assists
As mentioned, nobody passes the ball enough these days to rack up that many assists. Keep in mind that Stockton averaged 10.5 assists per game over 19 seasons in the NBA.
A lot would need to happen for anyone to get close. Frankly, there isn’t a player in the game today who deserves to take this record away from Stockton.