From LeBron James to Nikola Jokic to the Oklahoma City Thunder, here are some of the records set during the 2024-25 season.
The NBA has a new all-time leader in missed shots, and a player who had the first 30-20-20 game in league history.
The 2024-25 regular season is over, but before looking ahead to the postseason, let’s take a look back at the season that was. It began with LeBron James and Bronny James becoming the first father-son duo in league history, on opening night, while the final day of the season saw several playoff seedings decided in the Western Conference.
In between, there were a number of notable occurrences, some involving players, some related to teams, and others concerning entire franchises. Here are some of the most interesting.
LeBron James
Playing with his son wasn’t the only historic moment for LeBron James in his 22nd season, as he also set an NBA record, surpassing Michael Jordan in the process. James recorded the 563rd 30-point game of his career in January, breaking a tie with Jordan for the most in NBA history. Jordan held the record for 22 years, and James would add another eight to enter the playoffs with 571 such games.James also broke a dubious NBA record, one formerly held by Kobe Bryant. You don’t become the league’s all-time leading scorer without taking, making, and missing lots of shots. James passed Bryant for the most missed field goals in NBA history, which came on opening night.
Boston Celtics
Coming off an NBA championship, the Celtics took their three-point shooting to a new level and made the most three-pointers in a single season in NBA history, breaking the mark set by the Golden State Warriors two years ago. The Celtics broke the mark with five games left in the schedule, finishing the year with 1,457 makes, which is 154 more than the Cavaliers in second place.Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls
While the Celtics’ proficiency from deep got them on this list, the bricks that the Hornets and Bulls threw up in a game also warrant them a spot. In a mid-December game between the two, they combined for 75 missed three-pointers—the most ever in a single game. Charlotte shot 8 for 46 (17.4 percent), while Chicago was slightly better at 14 for 51 (27.5 percent).The two teams would have a rematch 17 days later, and wouldn’t you know, they managed to tie their own record. They again totaled 75 missed three-pointers as the Hornets went 10 for 43 (23.3 percent), while the Bulls went 18 for 60 (30 percent).
Nikola Jokic
We saw some crazy stat lines this year, but two of the wildest came courtesy of three-time MVP Nikola Jokic. First, he had 31 points, 22 assists, and 21 rebounds on March 7 versus the Phoenix Suns, thus posting the first 30-20-20 game in NBA history. Not to be outdone, on April 1 he had 61 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, for the highest-scoring triple-double in league history. Jokic’s offensive brilliance is summarized in the fact that his 61 points was the highest point total for any NBA player this season, while also, no one had more assists in a game than his 22 versus Phoenix.Detroit Pistons
What a difference a year can make. In the 2023-24 season, Detroit (14-68) had the worst record in the league. Now it’s a playoff team with a 44-38 mark, which means the Pistons more than tripled their win total from the previous season. That had been done only once previously in NBA history, but that instance comes with a caveat. The then-Charlotte Bobcats tripled their win total from seven in the 2011-12 season to 21 the following year, but that 2011-12 season was lockout-shortened and teams played just 66 games instead of the standard 82.Utah Jazz
Prior to this season, only one NBA franchise had never lost 60 games in a season. It may have surprised many to learn that it was the Utah Jazz, but that is no more. The Jazz went a team-worst 17-65 this year, and they became the final franchise to hit the 60-loss mark. Their previous high was 59 losses, set during the franchise’s inaugural season in 1974-75, when the team was known as the New Orleans Jazz.Oklahoma City Thunder
Many may not realize just how historic, and dominant, this season was for the OKC Thunder. They set a record for the most double-digit wins, finishing with 54 on the year. Thus, 54 of their 68 wins (79.4 percent) came by at least 10 points, which leads to another record. The Thunder’s average point differential of 12.87 this season is also the highest in NBA history. Both of these records were originally set by the 1971-72 Lakers, who won the NBA championship that season.Sandro Mamukelashvili
A nondescript reserve on a 34-48 Spurs team wouldn’t usually warrant a spot on this list, but Mamukelashvili had a performance for the ages on March 19. In a game against his hometown New York Knicks, Mamukelashvili came off the bench to produce 34 points on 13 of 14 shooting, including 7 of 7 from three-point land. He did it in just 19:27 of court time, making the Georgian the first player in NBA history to have at least 34 points in less than 20 minutes. Ironically, the one shot that he missed was maybe his easiest attempt of the night—a three-foot shot right next to the hoop.
