Last week I discussed one of the hardest achievements for any NBA player to obtain and that was the quadruple-double, and while this isn’t as elusive as that, the 5×5 game is still a grand achievement for any NBA player.
The 5×5 game is just what it name dictates, it’s accumulating 5 in all five areas of basketball: points, assists, rebounds, steals, and blocks. Just like what you would imagine earning this game requires a player to dominate both sides of the floor, without being too aggressive and physical as to avoid fouling out.
Throughout history, there have been 14 occurrences of this feat, but only contributed to seven different athletes and of those athletes Hakeem Olajuwon and Andrei Kirilenko are the only two to ever have multiple 5×5 games.
Look at the very first 5×5 game by Hakeem Olajuwon on March 10, 1987 against the Seattle SuperSonics in which he racked up 38 points, 17 rebounds, 6 assists 7 steals, and 12 blocks.
Hakeem’s other 5×5 games:
- March 3, 1990 vs. Golden State Warriors: 29 points, 18 rebounds, 9 assists, 5 steals, and 11 blocks.
- April 11, 1992 vs. Dallas Mavericks: 19 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals, and 5 blocks.
- April 22, 1993 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves: 33 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, and 5 blocks.
- November 5, 1993 vs. New Jersey Nets: 24 points, 19 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals, and 5 blocks.
- December 30, 1993 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves: 34 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, and 8 blocks.
After Hakeem’s initial 5×5 game (which you may have noticed it was a 5×6 game, but more about that later), David Robinson added his own 5×5 game on November 10, 1992 vs. the Milwaukee Bucks with 29 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, and 10 blocks.
Derrick Coleman of the New Jersey Nets would add his own 5×5 game on January 15, 1993 vs. the Philadelphia 76ers with 21 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 5 steals and 5 blocks.
On February 22, 1995 Vlade Divac would also have a 5×5 game vs. the Philadelphia 76ers with 19 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists, 5 steals, and 5 blocks.
The next 5×5 game would come in the 2000′s by the way of Jamaal Tinsley on November 16th, 2001 vs. Minnesota Timberwolves with 12 points, 9 rebounds, 15 assists, 6 steals, and 5 blocks.
Marcus Camby of the Denver Nuggets added his own 5×5 game on January 9, 2004 vs. Utah Jazz with 8 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals, and 8 blocks.
Finally, we came to the second NBA player to achieve multiple 5×5 games in the league, Andrei Kirilenko’s first 5×5 game was on December 3, 2003 vs. the Houston Rockets with 19 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 8 steals, and 5 blocks.
Andrei’s other 5×5 games:
- December 10, 2003 vs. New York Knicks: 10 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 6 steals, and 5 blocks.
- January 3, 2006 vs. Los Angeles Lakers: 14 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists, 6 steals, and 7 blocks (5×6 game).
As I mentioned earlier, there are two examples of a 5×6 games — getting ’6′ in all 5 statistical areas — and of course it was by the two men who have multiple 5×5 games: Andrei Kirilenko and Hakeem Olajuwon.
While the 5×5 game isn’t as “OMG” as a triple-double or even a quadruple-double, it is quite the feat for an all-around player who must be able to get the blocks and the steals to earn this accolade, which would mean a player be sturdy and quick on both floors.
The last 5×5 game was back in 2006, and if one was to happen in 2012-2013 NBA season, who would you put your money on?
