Michael Jordan 1987: 53pts Vs. Clyde’s Portland Trailblazers
In the 80s, MJ was Air Jordan and this game was your typical showcase of his unique and unparalleled athleticism during his 37.1ppg year. With his supposed nemesis Clyde Drexler in town, MJ raised it up just a tad and basically took on the entire team by himself, bringing them back throughout the whole game for the win in the final minutes. With drive after drive, MJ was firing on all cylinders while earning his charity shots the hard way. Not one three point attempt was even taken here to break 50. Even more dominant perhaps in addition to his 20 buckets on 59% shooting was his defense. Covering the entire floor at all times, MJ was seemingly everywhere. Look at MJ going insane after having his block called a foul in the end with the game already in the bag with seconds left. That is the reaction of someone seeking supreme dominance. As Barkley said, MJ doesn’t just want to beat you, he wants to win every play and dominate you so you’ll never think the same way again. You can see MJ just looking to kill people on the drive whenever he had the ball and you never knew what shot or pass might be created in that moment. Thus was the joy of watching the master of improvisation in his athletic prime. hoopsencyclopedia.blogspot.com