By the numbers: Beal's 60 ties one franchise record, set another originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
Bradley Beal's career-high 60 points on Wednesday night in Philadelphia unfortunately came in a loss and on one of the darkest days in recent American history, all of which affected the mood postgame. He and his teammates expressed dismay about current events and angst about the loss, which featured a 21-point comeback but also saw them squander a fourth-quarter lead.
Because of all that, this 60-point game won't be appreciated like it should. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't put it into perspective and marvel and what Beal accomplished on Wednesday.
Here are some stats to add context to Beal's big night...
*Beal set a new career-high with his 60 points, passing the 55 he scored last season against the Milwaukee Bucks in February. He also scored 53 the night before against the Bulls. All three of Beal's top scoring games have come in losses. Only six players in NBA history have more 50-point games in losses than Beal now. Wilt Chamberlain heads that list with 37.
*Beal made 20 field goals, seven threes and 13 free throws. Only one other player in NBA history has had at least those numbers in a single game. Amazingly, it was Kobe Bryant on his 81-point night against the Raptors in January of 2006. While Beal shot 57.1 percent on 35 field goal attempts, Bryant shot an even-more-ridiculous 60.9 percent on 46 attempts.
NBC Sports
*The 60 points for Beal are the most in a loss in Wizards/Bullets franchise history. The previous record was 56, set by Earl Monroe back in 1968. The most ever in a loss by an NBA player was 78 points. That was, of course, also Chamberlain who did so back in 1961. Beal is one of only five players to score at least 60 in a loss since the 1980s, joining Devin Booker (70, 2017), Michael Jordan (64, 1993), Damian Lillard (60, 2019) and Kemba Walker (60, 2018).
*Beal's 60 points tied Gilbert Arenas' franchise record set back on Dec. 17 against the Lakers. That was a memorable night when the Wizards wore their gold alternates, Arenas took a bow at the Staples Center and Bryant afterwards said he had no conscience as a shooter.
*Beal now has four 50-point games, which is a new franchise record. Arenas had the previous mark with three. Bernard King is third on that list with two, the only other Wizards/Bullets player to have multiple 50-point games. Others to get 50 in a single game include Jordan, Monroe, John Wall, Tracy Murray, Moses Malone and Phil Chenier.
*Beal is now averaging 34.4 points per game, which leads the NBA. Stephen Curry is second at 32.0 points per game. Beal is scoring like that while shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from three. He's also averaging 5.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. All of those numbers are up from what he produced last season.
Basketball Reference and NBA.com were used for this research
