50 Unexpected First Dates
When Andre Miller, a pass-first point guard who holds a modest 14.5 career scoring average, poured in 52 points against the Dallas Mavericks on January 30, it was one of the most unbelievable statistics in recent NBA history. In the previous three games, he’d scored 15 points combined, and in the two games following the scoring binge, he put up just eight and nine points, respectively. While he’s been an All-Star caliber player for much of his 12-year career, Miller is one of the least likely players to reach the half-century mark. Fifty-eight players have joined the 50-point club in the last 20 years — here some of the other most unexpected and in some cases, worst members.
Willie Burton, Philadelphia 76ers (53 points, 12/13/1994): Remember good ol’ Willie “”Bringin’ the Hurtin’” Burton? Stop lying, because you don’t. He barely lasted eight seasons in the NBA, appearing in just 39 total games over his final three years. But on one magical night, Burton poured in 53 points against his former team, the Miami Heat, on only 19 field goal attempts and a whopping 24 of 28 free throws. It’s not possible to come up with a more random player to put up fifty — not even Tim Burton could come up with a more scary tale. And if you’re wondering, that rookie card on the right sells for 40 cents.
Tracy Murray, Washington Bullets (50 points, 2/10/1998): Murray carved out a 12-year career as a three-point shooting role player, amassing a humble 9.0 scoring average. On a night when Chris Webber and Juwan Howard were out with injuries (shocker), Murray put up 29 shot attempts a short-handed Bullet squad that featured the likes of Darvin Ham, Terry Davis, Harvey Grant, Lawrence Moten, and Chris Whitney. That part is left out on on his official website.
Tony Delk, Phoenix Suns (53 points, 1/2/2001): Another journeyman with a lowly 9.1 career scoring average, Delk poured in 53 in a loss against his former Sacramento Kings team. A renowned three-point specialist going back to his days at Kentucky, he somehow did so without hitting a single three-pointer, joining Michael Jordan and Allen Iverson as the only guards to accomplish that feat in the last 20 years. Something is very wrong with this world when Tony Delk is mentioned in the same sentence as Jordan and Iverson.
Clifford Robinson, Phoenix Suns (50 points, 1/16/2000): The “Robinson scores 50″ headlines probably weren’t that surprising, since everyone just assumed it was David, who’d done so three times in his career. But Uncle Cliffy, who played for 18 seasons in league until the age of 40, became the oldest player in NBA history to score 50 points for the first time at 33 years and two months. He later became the oldest player to get busted for marijuana…three times at ages 34, 37, and 39.
Damon Stoudamire, Portland Trail Blazers (54 points, 1/14/2005): Perhaps as unexpected as Miller’s 52, “Mighty Mouse” scored 54 points during a renaissance 2004/05 campaign. The man who once tried to pass through an airport metal detector with marijuana wrapped in aluminum foil, also made Antoine Walker jealous by hitting five of his NBA record 21 three-point attempts in one game that season. Stoudamire was soon traded to Memphis and later signed with the Spurs, averaging 7.4 points over the next three years.
Dana Barros, Philadelphia 76ers (50 points, 3/14/1995): If this were baseball, Barros’ fluky and undeserved 1994/95 All-Star campaign, in which he averaged 20.6 points and 7.5 assists on a 24-58 Sixers team, significantly above his career marks of 10.5 and 3.3, would raise a lot of eyebrows. Even more amazing than his 50-point game, might be Barros’ 25-point, 15-assist, 10-rebound triple-double against the Magic. Yes, that Dana Barros. Then again, his best teammates were an aging Jeff Malone and the legendary Clarence Weatherspoon, so, yeah…
