62, 54 and 44

PARIS (George Eddy's International Show) - In the last 10 days, three All-Stars have put up some incredible numbers. We are at the point in the regular season where players are in a good rhythm without being too tired yet.

We are also at an historical point where the NBA contains several truly elite forwards who can do it all on the court and they benefit from the freedom that the no hand-checking rules provide.

Kobe Bryant said recently that he preferred the old school style that he experienced at the beginning of his career when a player had to have all the tools to beat the very physical defense played at the time.

Do you remember the Jordan Rules that the Detroit Pistons used to eliminate Michael Jordan from the playoffs? Of course, no such defense was played by the Charlotte Bobcats when Carmelo Anthony put up his career-high 62 points.

But scoring 60 or more is a rare feat and Melo himself pointed out that few players feel in their careers that ultimate rush of being totally unstoppable and "in the zone".

In the history of the NBA, 63 times has that magic number of 60 points scored been attained by a player. Wilt Chamberlain did it 32 times HIMSELF!

The last time a player scored 60 or more points was in 2009, when Kobe had 61 to set the Madison Square Garden record which Carmelo just broke.

The New York Knicks record of 60 by Bernard King dated back to... 1984. King graciously said that he was glad that a stand-up guy like Melo was the one to break his record, while LeBron James said he wished his Team USA brother, Melo, had stayed longer on the court in order to break 70, something Jordan had never done.

Jordan and Kobe both reached the 60-point plateau five times in their careers.

In the playoffs, this feat has only been achieved twice: by Jordan and Elgin Baylor. MJ's 63, the post-season record, came in a famous loss to Boston when Larry Bird declared that "God was disguised as Michael Jordan".

Of course, don't forget that in his post-Shaq bulimia period, Kobe scored 81 in 2006 and twice 60 or more in one week in March 2007!

Even more impressive to me are the all-around stats that Kevin Durant has put up in the last week and a half. He is a sure-fire candidate to better Melo's record in the coming weeks after scoring his career-high with 54 against the Golden State Warriors, followed a few days later by 46 points in a big win over the Portland Trailblazers and their tough defensive stopper Nicolas Batum.

Those two scoring binges came over elite opponents in close games. That makes 10 games in a row for KD with 30 or more points, something Kobe did last season and LeBron did in 2005-2006.

Durant's overall stats wreak of MVP status because, with Russell Westbrook out again, KD has put the Oklahoma City Thunder offense squarely on his back with fantastic results. He often brings the ball up the court like Magic Johnson to start the attack and then finishes the job with Jordan-like scoring flashes which can come from anywhere on the hardwood.

He's shooting over 40 percent from three-point range so you have to go out and cover him and he's hitting almost 90 percent on his numerous free throws when he drives to the hoop. Kevin Durant is the futuristic 2014 version of Jordan from the nineties or Kobe from 2000 to 2010.

He's 6'9" (2.07m) but dribbles and shoots like a small guard and like his Team USA buddies, LeBron and Carmelo, he's a good person.

All three superstars have become excellent three-point shooters which helps inflate considerably their scoring numbers.

In fact, LeBron admits he's a bit jealous of his friends' scoring feats, so maybe HE will try and better their numbers in upcoming weeks.

LaMarcus Aldridge will not be bombing in three-pointers in upcoming weeks because that shot is not a part of his arsenal but watch out for his long-range twos! Four days ago he learned he would not be a starter for the West at the All-Star game (something Batum found to be ridiculous!) so LaMarcus went out and scored a career-high 44 points in an important win for Portland over Denver to prove that he should have been chosen over Blake Griffin because he and his surprising team are simply having a better season.

We all know that the voting by the fans is full of foibles and Griffin's explosiveness and dunks make him a fan favorite for the no-defense All-Star fest but true afficianados also know that Aldridge, the Blazers go-to scoring and rebounding machine, deserved to START!

In any case, these incredible individual performances announce an All-Star game with record-breaking scoring potential!

George Eddy

FIBA

FIBA's columnists write on a wide range of topics relating to basketball that are of interest to them. The opinions they express are their own and in no way reflect those of FIBA.

FIBA takes no responsibility and gives no guarantees, warranties or representations, implied or otherwise, for the content or accuracy of the content and opinion expressed in the above article.