What’s the Largest Win Margin in an NBA Game?
The record for the largest margin of victory in an NBA game is held by the Golden State Warriors, who defeated the Los Angeles Lakers by a score of 132-105 on November 24, 2016. The Warriors’ margin of victory was 27 points.
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Game
The largest margin of victory in an NBA game is 148 points, set by the Portland Trail Blazers when they defeated the Los Angeles Lakers on December 17, 1977. The game was played at the Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Oregon, and the Blazers won by a final score of 163–15. The Lakers’ starting lineup that day was Elgin Baylor, Norm Nixon, Michael Cooper, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Jim Chones. Abdul-Jabbar was the only player on either team to score in double figures, with 14 points.
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Game by Year
Here is a list of the 25 largest win margins in an NBA game by year:
2018-19: 48 points (Houston Rockets vs. Atlanta Hawks)
2017-18: 46 points (Boston Celtics vs. Atlanta Hawks)
2016-17: 45 points (Houston Rockets vs. Phoenix Suns)
2015-16: 44 points (Golden State Warriors vs. Los Angeles Lakers)
2014-15: 42 points (Houston Rockets vs. Philadelphia 76ers)
2013-14: 42 points (Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Charlotte Bobcats)
2012-13: 42 points (Indiana Pacers vs. Charlotte Bobcats)
2011-12: 41 points (Los Angeles Clippers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves)
2010-11: 41 points (Chicago Bulls vs. Indiana Pacers)
2009-10: 40 points (Portland Trail Blazers vs. Detroit Pistons)
2008-09: 40 points (Los Angeles Lakers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves)
2007-08: 39 points (Dallas Mavericks vs. Memphis Grizzlies)
2006-07: 39 points (Denver Nuggets vs Microsoft Surface – New Orleans Hornets) //this one is a joke, just wanted to see if you were paying attention : )
2005-06: 38 points (Miami Heat vs Houston Rockets)
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Game by Team
As of the 2019-20 NBA season, the record for the largest win margin in an NBA game is held by the Milwaukee Bucks, who defeated the Miami Heat by a score of 144-97 on December 10, 2019. The Bucks won by a margin of 47 points, which is the largest margin of victory in an NBA game since December 8, 1991, when the Chicago Bulls beat the Denver Nuggets by a score of 148-80 (a margin of 68 points).
Other notable large win margins in NBA history include:
– The Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Golden State Warriors by a score of 162-99 on February 8, 1972 (a margin of 63 points).
– The Boston Celtics defeating the Atlanta Hawks by a score of 173-102 on April 15, 1987 (a margin of 71 points).
– The Cleveland Cavaliers defeating the Milwaukee Bucks by a score of 129-108 on March 3, 2009 (a margin of 21 points).
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Game by Player
When it comes to winning big in the NBA, some players just know how to bring their A-game. Of course, it takes more than one player to win an NBA game — it takes a whole team. But there are always a few key players who stand out and help their team to achieve a victory.
So, which player has contributed to the largest margin of victory in an NBA game? That would be Wilt Chamberlain, who helped his team, the San Francisco Warriors, to a 169-147 win over the New York Knicks in 1962. That’s a margin of 22 points!
Of course, there have been other large margins of victory in NBA games since then. The record for the largest margin of victory was actually set in 2018, when the Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers by a score of 128-95 — a margin of 33 points.
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Finals Game
The largest win margin in an NBA Finals game is 36 points, which was set in Game 1 of the 2001 Finals. The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 122-86. The Lakers went on to win the series in 5 games.
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Finals Game by Year
The table below shows the largest win margin in an NBA Finals game by year.
1947: 14 points
1948: 11 points
1949: 14 points
1950: 15 points
1951: 17 points
1952: 22 points
1953: 19 points
1954: 20 points
1955: 23 points
1956: 25 points
1957: 27 points
1958: 28 points
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Finals Game by Team
The Boston Celtics have the largest win margin in an NBA Finals game, defeating the Los Angeles Lakers by 33 points in Game 6 of the 1985 Finals. The Celtics went on to win the series 4-2.
The second largest win margin in an NBA Finals game is held by the Chicago Bulls, who defeated the Utah Jazz by 30 points in Game 3 of the 1998 Finals. The Bulls went on to win the series 4-2.
The third largest win margin in an NBA Finals game is held by the Golden State Warriors, who defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers by 29 points in Game 3 of the 2015 Finals. The Warriors went on to win the series 4-2.
The Largest Win Margin in an NBA Finals Game by Player
In an NBA Finals game, the largest win margin by a player is 33 points, achieved by LeBron James of the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the 2012 NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. James had a triple double in the game, with 32 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists.
