DeMar DeRozan holds the number one spot on this list of best New Year’s Day performances.
It only took the blink of an eye, but 2024 is history and 2025 has already started. And just like there have been some impressive performances on New Year’s Eve, there have been players who have managed to start the new year with eye-popping numbers as well. Here are the five best performances on Jan. 1.
Nurkić is currently playing for the Phoenix Suns, but the big man spent his most productive years with the Portland Trail Blazers, where he was part of a Big Three alongside CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard. One of Nurkić’s best games of his career came on the very first day of 2019. The big man, 24 at that time, delivered an impressive 24-point, 23-rebound double-double to lift the Blazers to a 113-108 overtime win. Nurkić also recorded seven assists, five steals and five blocks across 38 minutes in that win.
Another Portland player who left his mark in the New Year was CJ McCollum. He played a massive role in this 95-89 win over the Timberwolves during his breakout season, the 2016-17 campaign. McCollum finished with 43 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals across 39 minutes against the Wolves. Perhaps even more impressive than the final stat line was the efficiency of McCollum; he went 16-for-25 from the field, 3-for-6 from 3-point range and 8-for-9 from the charity stripe.
Lowry, now with the 76ers, delivered one of his best career performances while on the Toronto Raptors to begin 2017. In their first matchup of the year, the Raptors faced the Los Angeles Lakers and the veteran floor general was 30 years old at the time. Lowry exploded for 41 points, nine rebounds and seven assists as the Raptors cruised to a 123-114 win over the Lakers.
You won’t find many Top Performers lists of recent vintage that don’t include Jokić, who checks in at No. 2 in this list following an impressive outing against the Celtics two seasons ago. The Nuggets, who would end up winning the NBA title later that year, cruised to a 123-111 win over Boston, and Jokić was responsible for doing the heavy lifting. He posted 30 points, 12 rebounds, 12 assists and a steal across 32 minutes. This outing was one of Jokić’s league-leading 29 triple-doubles that season which made him a finalist for the MVP award.
The best performance on a New Year’s Day in the last decade goes to DeRozan, who had an absolutely dominant performance in a 131-127 overtime win against the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2017-18 campaign. The star forward exploded for 52 points in that matchup, going 17-for-29 from the field, 5-for-9 from 3-point range and 13-for-13 from the charity stripe. He did more than just score, though, as DeRozan rounded out that stat line by adding five rebounds, eight assists, a steal and a block across 43 minutes. The 52-point scoring mark remains an all-time high for NBA games played on January 1.
