Basketball stats

The first public basketball game was on March 12, 1892 in a YMCA gymnasium. Approximately 200 spectators came to view this new and unheard of sport. As the sport grew in popularity, it was introduced into the 1904 Olympics, but it was not until 1936 when it was acknowledged as a medal event.

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NBA Teams

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Top 100 Point scorers, all time

Data: January 2023.

A basketball player (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) wearing goggles and a Milwaukee uniform prepares to shoot a basketball during a game. The image is in black and white. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the first player to reach 34,000 total points, becoming the leading scorer in NBA history on Jan. 10, 1986 and finishing his career at 38,387. Only Karl Malone, ending his career as the league’s second-leading scorer with 36,928 points, and LeBron James have done so since. Notably, Kobe Bryant came close to the 34,000-point mark before ultimately ending his career as the NBA’s third-leading scorer with 33,643 points.

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Points per Game (PPG)

Data: January 2023.

Points per game, often abbreviated PPG, is the average number of points scored by a player per game played in a sport, over the course of a series of games, a whole season, or a career. It is calculated by dividing the total number of points by number of games.

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PPG and games played

Data: January 2023.
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Points per minute (PPM)

NBA Power Rankings

A visualization of John Schuhmann's NBA Power Rankings for each week of the 2021-22 Regular Season.

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Courting success