When looking back on NBA history, there are very few performances by players over the age of 40 years old that are worth remembering. There have only been five times in which a player over 40 scored at least 30 points in a game and only 14 times that a player of that age scored at least 25 points.
As we look back upon the best scoring performances from the NBA’s elders, we can also look ahead and predict where LeBron James will inevitably fall on this list as he approaches 40 years old in December 2024, and is still playing at a high level. After all, he is chasing the player who dominates the top of the list.
1. Michael Jordan – 43 Points (40Y, 4 Days)
After unretiring in 2001-02 for the Washington Wizards and suffering an injury derailing his season, Michael Jordan returned for one last hurrah in 2002-03. On February 21 of that season, just four days after turning 40 years old, Michael Jordan led the Wizards to an 89-86 victory over the New Jersey Nets, making NBA history in the process. Jordan scored 43 points on 18-30 shooting from the field and 7-8 from the foul line. He added 10 rebounds and 4 steals as well.
2. Michael Jordan – 39 Points (40Y, 20 Days)
Just 16 days after his record-setting performance against the Nets, Jordan descended on New York’s Madison Square Garden for the last time against the New York Knicks. Among many historic moments Jordan has in the building is this final game performance. Although the Wizards dropped a tough 87-86 game, Jordan erupted for 39 points on 13-22 shooting from the floor and 13-15 from the foul line, leaving Knicks fans with a farewell performance to remember him by. It was Jordan’s fourth 30-point game in 16 days.
3. Michael Jordan – 35 Points (40Y, 10 Days)
Just six days after his record-setting performance in New Jersey, Michael Jordan made another run at the record he eventually surpassed against the Knicks. In a February 27 matchup with the Houston Rockets, Jordan led the Wizards to a 100-98 win with 35 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists. Jordan shot 15-26 from the field and just 5-7 from the foul line for the 28-29 Wizards at the time.
T4. Michael Jordan – 30 Points (40Y, 6 Days)
Michael Jordan’s next highest-scoring performance was a part of his torrid 16-day stretch that saw him record four 30-point games and a 40-point game after turning 40 in 2003. Going up against an extremely talented Dallas Mavericks team, Jordan went for 30 points, 9 rebounds, and 2 steals on 15-26 shooting from the field. Teammate Jerry Stackhouse also added 30 points but the Wizards would fall to the Mavericks, 106-101.
T4. Dirk Nowitzki – 30 Points (40Y, 294 Days)
Dirk Nowitzki is the only player not named Michael Jordan to score 30 points in a game after turning 40 years old. In the final home game of his career against the Phoenix Suns, the Mavericks did all they could to feed their franchise legend into the history books. In a 120-109 victory, Nowitzki played 33 minutes, shot 11-31 from the field and 5-14 from three to record 30 points in the win.
T6. Michael Jordan – 27 Points (40Y, 18 Days)
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The NBA record before Michael Jordan’s final run during the 2002-03 season was 27 points set by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1987. From the time he turned 40, Jordan would match or surpass that total in a game five times in two months of play. One of the final times he would reach this milestone was March 7, 2003, in a three-point loss to the Bucks. Jordan shot just 11-24 from the field for a total of 27 points with 9 rebounds and 2 steals.
T6. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 27 Points (40Y, 229 Days)
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar held the record for most points scored in a game by a player 40 years or older for 16 years until Jordan returned to the Wizards in 2002-03. That record-setting performance came in a game between Kareem’s Lakers and the Sacramento Kings in December 1987. In a five-point win, Kareem led all scorers with 27 points on 11-21 shooting to go with 9 rebounds.
Every NBA Team’s Oldest Player To Score 40 Points In A Game
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T8. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 26 Points (40Y, 225 Days)
There are seven different times in which a player over 40 years old recorded 26 points in a game in NBA history. The first time this occurred was a new NBA record set by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar until he broke it himself four days later. In a 127-119 win over the Nuggets in Los Angeles, Kareem led the Lakers with 26 points on 11-19 shooting. This stood for the second-highest scoring mark in NBA history by a 40-year-old for 15 years, only to be matched by four other players.
