Damian Lillard had a historic scoring night on Sunday at home against the Houston Rockets. But he not only set his own career in points in a single game, he also surpassed an impressive personal milestone in doing so.
When Lillard woke up Sunday, he was ranked 64th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. It may not sound like an impressive feat in and of itself, but when he went to sleep that night, he was ranked 62nd, having just scored 71 points in one game and had eclipsed the 19,000 career point mark.
Damian Lillard has a great game, passes 19k points in the process
.@Dame_Lillard ???? @spidamitchell ???? pic.twitter.com/JVwEO0Dtkd
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 27, 2023
He entered the game needing 45 points to reach the milestone. In his previous contest, Lillard passed Scottie Pippen on the scoring list and had Dale Ellis and Reggie Theus in his sights once he was able to cross the 19,000 threshold. He’s one of the best scorers in the game, averaging over 32 points per game, but he was more likely to break the 19k mark Tuesday against the Warriors than Sunday against the Rockets.
Maybe he knew. Lillard was on fire in the first half Sunday, going 8-of-11 on 3-pointers and scoring 41 points in the first two frames. He started the fourth quarter with 50 points and finished with a whopping 71. It was his career high in points and tied for the most points scored by any player this season.
How does Lillard rank on the all-time list?
When it was all said and done, Lillard took 38 shots, making 22 of them, and going perfect 14 of 14 from the free throw line. He made 13 of his 22 3-pointers. He is now tied with Davion Mitchell, David Robinson and Elgin Baylor for eighth most points scored in a single game.
As for the list of all-time goalscorers, keep an eye out for Lillard’s rise over some of the game’s greats. If he plays in 20 more regular season games in 2022 and averages 30 points, then he has another 600 total to score before the year is out. That would put him at 19,626 career points and 53rd on the list. He would pass the likes of Bob Lanier, Jamal Crawford, Tony Parker and Dwight Howard in the process, and be within striking distance of Bernard King and John Stockton when he starts next year.
