The 2023-24 NBA regular season is nearly halfway through for most teams, and there have already been some excellent individual performances to speak of.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the five best individual performances across the NBA thus far this season.
5. Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks, 12/15/23 vs Phoenix Suns
It is rare to find a player the height of Jalen Brunson have the kind of impact that Brunson had in this matchup against the Suns last month.
Brunson scored a career-high 50 points in this matchup to go along with six rebounds and nine assists. Perhaps more impressively, he went nine of nine on three points attempts, tying an NBA record for the most threes made in a game without a miss.
Brunson isn’t typically thought of by most fans as a true superstar. But in this game, he pretty clearly outshined everyone on the court, which included the likes of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal on the other side of the ball.
4. Luka Dončić, Dallas Mavericks, 12/25/23 vs Phoenix Suns
Christmas Day has always been a slate of NBA games that feature the brightest stars in the sport. And Dončić outshined them all with perhaps the most complete performance of anybody on this list.
The Slovenian superstar finished with a season-high 50 points, six rebounds, and 15 assists to help lead the Mavericks to a 128-114 victory over the Suns.
This performance from Dončić is truly absurd because of simply how many points he contributed not only through his scoring ability, but also his influence as a passer.
With this excellent game, Dončić joined a group of elite group of players, becoming just the fourth player to ever score at least 50 points on Christmas Day.
3. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks, 12/13/23 vs Indiana Pacers
Antetokounmpo has obviously had some excellent games over the course of his 11-year NBA career. But this performance is pretty clearly the best of his entire career from a purely statistical standpoint.
He finished with a career-high 64 points in this game to go along with 14 rebounds and three assists while shooting 71.4 percent from the field.
In most other seasons, this game from Antetokounmpo would likely be the best performance from any player all year. However, that all changed with two truly of the best performances in recent memory on Monday night.
2. Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves, 01/22/24 vs Charlotte Hornets
Towns has been a great player for quite some time in the NBA. But at times throughout his career, he has often been overlooked when it comes to conversations about the best players in all of basketball.
His performance against the Hornets on Monday night should help change that narrative, scoring a career-high 62 points to go along with eight rebounds and two assists.
62 points for KAT ‼️
A new career high and Timberwolves franchise record 👏
Hornets-Timberwolves | Live on the NBA App
📲 https://t.co/MUIzaNNsLN pic.twitter.com/K4Zzzyx4n1— NBA (@NBA) January 23, 2024
What makes Towns’ performance so incredible is the diversity in his shot attempts in the game. With this performance, Towns became the first player in NBA history to ever make 10 or more free throws, two-point attempts, and three-point attempts in a game.
Karl-Anthony Towns is the first player in NBA history to have a game with:
10+ Two-Pointers Made
10+ Three-Pointers Made
10+ Free-Throws Made pic.twitter.com/GnFMYsfrtn— StatMamba (@StatMamba) January 23, 2024
The only thing that keeps Towns from the No. 1 spot on this list was that Joel Embiid happened to score even more points on Monday night.
1. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers, 01/22/24 vs San Antonio Spurs
Embiid appears to be taking his game to a whole other level this season, which says a lot considering he is coming off an MVP season.
On Monday night, Embiid has undoubtedly the best performance of his career, scoring 70 points to go along with 18 rebounds and five assists.
AN HISTORIC 70-POINT NIGHT FOR JOEL EMBIID 👏
✅ 76ers franchise record
✅ 9th player in NBA history to score 70+
✅ A new career high70 PTS, 18 REB, 24/41 FGM, 21/23 FTM pic.twitter.com/gDKY2E9bVA
— NBA (@NBA) January 23, 2024
With this performance, Embiid is just the ninth player in NBA history to ever score 70 points in a game, breaking the 76ers team record for points in a single game previously held by Wilt Chamberlain in the process.
Joel Embiid has 70 points.
Officially broke Wilt Chamberlain’s 76ers record for points in a game.
Unreal.
pic.twitter.com/0Ltk9Hoyfa— Greg Price (@greg_price11) January 23, 2024
It’s a game from Embiid that 76ers fans will likely never forget, and it should help put him in the early lead to repeat for another MVP award this season.
