How difficult is it to score 3,000 points in a single season? Only two players in NBA history have done it, and two people are expected to be active

In the NBA's scoring chart, "3000 points" is a very deceptive number. If the time dimension is extended to the entire career, even a character player who averages about 10 points per game can easily touch this threshold by just three full seasons in the league; even a player on the edge of rotation will be enough to achieve a breakthrough in 5 years. But when "3000 points" was limited to the "single season" framework, it instantly transformed from "ordinary achievement" to "Scoring Everest" at the historical level of the NBA - since the establishment of the league, only two people have successfully reached the top, and its difficulty is so high that it can be regarded as the ultimate test of basketball players' scoring ability, physical tolerance and competitive will.

To understand the difficulty of 3,000 points in a single season, you must first disassemble the mathematical logic behind it. There are 82 games in the NBA regular season. If you want to achieve 3,000 points in a single season, it means that players need to "play all 82 games" and the average score must reach 36.59 points (3000÷82≈36.59). In actual combat, you often need to sprint at an average of 37 points per game. This number seems to be just a scoring indicator, but in fact it hides a double pressure on the players' body and mind.

From the perspective of scoring efficiency, what does it mean to average 37 points per game? Since 1980, only Jordan (averages 37.1 points in 1987), Harden (averages 36.1 points in 2019), and Kobe (averages 35.4 points in 2006) have been infinitely close to this level, and neither of them has been able to break through the 36-point mark. You should know that averaging 37 points means that players need to maintain extremely high scoring efficiency within 48 minutes per game: if calculated at 50% shooting percentage, they need to make 29.6 shots per game; even if three-pointers (assuming 35% of three-point shooting percentage) and free throws (assuming 85% of free throws), at least 25 shots + 8 free throws are required in each game, which puts almost strict requirements on the player's feel, judgment and shooting stability.

What's more cruel is the premise of "playing 82 games in full". The NBA season spans 6 months, with intensive schedules mixed with away games, back-to-back games and high-intensity confrontations. Even for stars with top physical fitness, it is difficult to avoid absences caused by injuries or fatigue. Taking Harden's "scoring feast" in 2019 as an example, he averaged 36.1 points per game that year, but missed 8 games due to injury. In the end, the total score remained at 2818 points, which was 182 points away from 3000 points; Kobe averaged 35.4 points per game in 2006, and after missing 10 games, he scored 2832 points, which was also 168 points behind the standard. It can be seen that even if you can score a historical average score, the "full attendance" level is enough to make most stars fail. After all, under the continuous high-intensity scoring consumption, the wear speed of the body will increase exponentially. Players who can take into account both "high scores" and "full attendance" can be called the "physiological monster" of the NBA.

In the NBA's more than 70 years of history, only two players have crossed the threshold of 3,000 points in a single season. Their achievements have their own emphasis, but they are also shocked the basketball world. The first one is Wilt Chamberlain, known as the "Basketball Emperor". If 3,000 points in a single season is a "nightmare" challenge, Chamberlain turned this "nightmare" into his own "personal show" - he has achieved 3,000 points in a single season in three careers, namely 1960 (3,033 points), 1961 (3,259 points) and 1962 (4,029 points). Among them, 4,029 points in 1962 is the scoring record of "unprecedented and no future" in NBA history, and no one can get close to it so far.

It is undeniable that Chamberlain's scoring achievements have certain "dividends of the times": there were only 8-9 teams in the NBA in the 1960s, and there was a gap between the players' overall competitiveness and modern basketball; the defensive rules at that time were not yet perfect (such as there was no "defense three-second" limit, and the penalty area was low), and Chamberlain's physical talent was called a "dimensionality reduction strike" in that era - a height of 2.16 meters and a 2.34 meters wingspan, which was far beyond the speed and bounce of the center in the same period, leaving him almost unstoppable under the basket. But even so, the three-time 3,000-point achievement in a single season is still very valuable: in 1962, he not only scored 4,029 points, but also averaged 25.7 rebounds per game. This dual dominance of "scoring + rebounding" is unimaginable even in modern basketball. As basketball legend Bill Russell said: "Chamberlain may have had less competition in an era, but he is the only one who can score 'as he wants'."

The second person to achieve this achievement was Michael Jordan, the "God of Basketball". If Chamberlain's scoring relies on "talent crushing", then Jordan's 3,000 points in a single season is the representative of "ultimate attack" - in the 1986-87 season, Jordan played 82 regular season games, averaged 37.1 points per game, and finally became the second place in NBA history and the only one 3,000-pointer in a single season in the past 40 years with a total score of 3,041 points.

Jordan's breakthrough was far more difficult than that of Chamberlain's era. The NBA's defense intensity in the 1980s has been greatly improved, and the physical confrontation is fierce, and opponents' "double-team tactics" against Jordan are emerging one after another; and Jordan's scoring method does not rely on height advantages, but on unsolvable mid-range jump shots, sharp breakthroughs and extremely strong killing ability. That season, his shooting percentage reached 48.2% and his free throw percentage was 84.4%. He faced at least 3-4 people's key defense in each game, but he could still maintain a stable output. What's even more rare is that while scoring at high intensity, he can also contribute 5.2 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.9 steals. The comprehensiveness of both offense and defense makes this "3,000-point journey" more legendary.. In the decades since then, even though super scorers such as Kobe and Harden have launched multiple attacks, they have never reached the 3,000-point mark: Kobe was 168 points behind in 2006, Harden was 182 points behind in 2019, and stars such as Durant and Curry have never been close to the threshold of averaging 37 points per game.

NBA has entered the "small ball era". The fast-paced and more three-pointers have generally improved the average score. There are many stars who average 30 points per game in recent seasons (such as Antetokounmpo, Embiid, Jokic, etc.), but there are only a handful of people who are truly expected to score 3,000 points in a single season. Take the Lakers' core Luka Doncic as an example. In the past five seasons, Doncic has averaged 28.8 points, 27.7 points, 32.4 points, 33.9 points and 22.8 points per game. In the 23-24 season, he even won the scoring leader with 33.9 points per game, becoming one of the youngest "scoring leaders in two consecutive seasons" in NBA history. More importantly, his scoring method has great "endurance" - unlike Jordan and Kobe who rely on their physical explosive power to break through, Doncic is good at using rhythm changes, step back three-pointers and small tricks at the basket to score, and his physical wear level is far lower than that of traditional scorers. Doncic has never suffered a major injury, which laid the foundation for his future impact on "full attendance + high scores".

Secondly, Doncic has unlimited ball rights and tactical support. As the absolute core of the Lakers, he is not only the team's offensive starting point, but also the final end point. His average number of shots is stable at more than 22 times, and he also enjoys the privilege of "adjusting the offensive rhythm at any time" - this tactical position. Of course, Doncic is very difficult to score 3,000 points in a single season: firstly, the explosiveness of scoring of "37 points per game" - at present, his average score is still a certain gap, and it needs to further improve the stability of three-pointers or the efficiency of the basket ending; secondly, the physical management of "82 games" - even if his playing style is worn out, the intensive schedule and targeted defense of the opponent may still bring the risk of injury. But in the long run, the next five years will still be Doncic's golden period. If he can continue to improve his scoring efficiency and maintain healthy, 3,000 points in a single season is not out of reach.

Secondly, the scoring champion of last season was under great pressure, averaging 32.7 points per game, becoming the league's scoring champion. It is worth mentioning that the pressure was under great pressure, averaging 30+ points per game for three consecutive seasons and shooting percentage exceeded 50%. He played 75 games in two consecutive seasons, and his physical condition was very good. He is the most realistic player who breaks 3,000 points in a single season in active service. If they do what they want, they are expected to continue writing this legend in the small ball era. By then, they will not only become the third person in NBA history, but also completely establish their status as a "historical scorer" - after all, those who can cross this "Scoring Mount Everest" are destined to be remembered forever in basketball history.