Craziest NBL Stat Lines of the Past 10 Years
Photo: Melbourne United
Written by Evan Baltutis (@NBL_News on Twitter/X)
After Tahjere McCall tied the record for most assists (15) in a game during the 40-minute era last weekend, we thought it would be fun to look at some of the craziest NBL stat lines in the past 10 years.
LaMelo Ball
32 PTS, 13 AST, 11 REB, 40 MIN – 25/11/2019
Even if you aren’t a hardcore NBL fan, you would’ve heard of LaMelo’s insane final games in the league for the Illawarra Hawks. This game alone, solidified him as a top 3 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, in just his second last game before injury. Despite the game going to overtime against the Cairns Taipans, LaMelo is still the only player to drop a 30-point triple-double in the 40-minute era. Andrew Gaze and Corey ‘Homicide’ Williams’ commentary during the game, is self-exploratory on how crazy this game was.
Colton Iverson
26 PTS, 22 REB. 64 FG%, 35 MIN – 4/4/2021
20-rebound games have occurred multiple times in the past 10 years, but the most notable would have to be this Colton Iverson game in the NBL Cup. Although Iverson and the Breakers didn’t have the best of seasons in 2021, this performance is still highlighted as a special feat during that year.
Chris Goulding
50 PTS, 9 3PM, 6 REB, 40 MIN – 9/2/2014
Every time we see a player have 25 points by halftime or near 40 points in the 4th quarter of a game, we always think they can reach the 50 mark. Yet, still to this day, Chris Goulding is the only player in the NBL to drop 50 points, since the NBL switched to 40-minute games in the 2009-10 season. To make this performance even more impressive, Goulding did this in a regulation game with no overtime, even though he did play the entire game. With how competitive the league is now, I doubt we see anyone score 50 points, let alone in regulation for a long time.
Damian Martin
9 STL, 9 REB, 8 AST, 2 PTS – 24/10/2014
This stat line doesn’t look too impressive when you first glance at it, but when you realise that Damian Martin almost achieved a triple-double with steals and not points, you can’t not help but think that this isn’t one of the craziest NBL stat lines. It is hard enough as it is to get a triple-double in a 40-minute game, but to almost do it with 9 steals and only 2 points, truly demonstrates why the Defensive Player of the Year trophy is named after the great man.
Josh Childress
36 PTS, 19 REB, 7 AST, 5 BLK – 9/11/2014
Josh Childress had much hype coming into the league in 2014, after playing a near 400 games in the NBA. He met that hype straight away just 5 rounds into his debut NBL season, as he put up this insane game against the Adelaide 36ers in regulation. Looking back at the past 10 years of individual performances in the NBL, this is probably the closest we have seen to someone getting a quadruple-double. On top of that, the NBA veteran had a massive 36 points and 19 rebounds, which I cannot imagine what type of Supercoach score that would get nowadays. Unfortunately, injuries hampered Childress’ time in the NBL, as this performance has not been close to republicated since.
Bryce Cotton
45 PTS, 7 3PM, 3 STL, 34 MIN – 5/3/2017
Arguably, the greatest individual performance we have seen in the past 10 years in the NBL. Bryce Cotton wrote his name in the history books, after this unreal 45-point game, in Game 3 of the 2017 NBL Grand Final Series. This ultimately led to the Wildcats sweeping the Hawks, to win the 2017 NBL Championship, and aren’t we all glad this wasn’t the last game we saw of Bryce Cotton in the NBL.
Tahjere McCall
42 PTS, 10 AST, 6 REB, 5 STL – 23/4/2022
This display from Tahjere McCall to end the 2021-22 season, would be talked about more often if the game itself had more meaning to it. Unfortunately, this Cairns v Brisbane game, the last for both teams in the season, looked like a certified YMCA pickup game, with the lack of defence played throughout. Still, it’s hard not to mention this impressive stat line from Tahjere McCall, who I think is currently the only player in this league, that is capable of getting a quadruple-double.
Nathan Sobey
22 PTS, 13 REB, 10 AST, 36 MIN – 26/10/2018
Initially, this game wasn’t recognised as a triple-double for Nathan Sobey, as he was one assist short of the achievement. However, after the game, the box score was updated to show Nathan Sobey finish with 10 assists and ultimately a 20-point triple-double. There have been a few triple-doubles in the past 10 years, but Sobey is the only other player than LaMelo, to finish with a 20-point triple double. Where that extra assist came from, who knows?
Dejan Vasiljevic
42 PTS, 10 3PM, 6 REB, 5 AST – 4/1/2023
The most recent individual performance from this list, comes from now Adelaide 36er, Dejan Vasiljevic. In this game last season, DJ tied the record for most threes (10) in a 40-minute NBL game, tying with former Wildcat import Jermaine Beal. As much as that Beal game was super fun to watch, Vasiljevic ending this game with more points, rebounds, and assists, makes this stat line all the more impressive.
