A few days ago, the legendary superstar Shaquille O’Neal participated in the talk show Dan Patrick Show. In the show, O’Neal said that there are 5 players in the league today who can surpass Kobe Bryant’s 81-point record. They are James Harden, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Stephen Curry and Devin Booker. It is worth mentioning that Harden, KD and Irving all play for the Brooklyn Nets.
From 1996 to 2004, O’Neal and Kobe Bryant partnered with the Lakers and led the team to achieve a three-game dominance. After they parted ways, Kobe’s scoring ability was further released.
In the game against the Toronto Tyrannosaurus on January 22, 2006, Kobe played 42 minutes, made 28 of 46 shots, 7 of 13 three-pointers, 18 of 20 free throws, scoring 81 points and leading the Lakers to 122. -104 defeat the opponent. It is worth mentioning that this game has not been extended.
Looking at the entire NBA history, Kobe’s 81-point miracle is second only to the 100-point single game created by Wilt Chamberlain that year. Since Kobe, no player has ever been able to break this level.
In O’Neal’s view, five of the current players can break Kobe’s 81 points. Among them, Harden, KD and Irving are all net tennis stars. Harden is considered to be the strongest offensive player among active players. Both he and KD have won scoring titles, and Irving also has a strong offensive ability. This also shows the strong offensive firepower of the Nets.
Curry of the Warriors is another candidate proposed by O’Neal. Curry is the greatest three-point shooter in the history of the NBA. In the defeat of the Blazers on January 4, Curry scored 62 points, setting a new career high.
In addition, O’Neal is also very optimistic about the new star Booker of the Suns. Booker is the player with the highest score in a single game among active players. In the 2017 game against Celtic, Booker, who was only 21 years old, scored 70 points.
Interestingly, O’Neal also said that if he can achieve these points, he can not only surpass Kobe’s 81 points, but even break Chamberlain’s 100 points record. He said: “I have to shoot more than 75% from the free throw line. Then, I have to have a lot of three-second violations without being blown. I have to not encounter double or triple doubles, and I have to have a lot of easy scoring opportunities. .”
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