Teams are coming back from 20-point deficits more frequently than ever, and the league has taken notice.
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With more than a month left to play, 2023-24 has already seen the second-most 20-point come-from-behind victories in a single season since 1996-97, when play-by-play data began being recorded. ...
Two decades ago during the 2003-04 season, which was James' rookie season, there were only 12 games in which a team overcame a 20-point deficit to win. Two seasons later, that figure dropped to five games.
This season, there have already been 29 games in which a team won after trailing by 20 points or more, one shy of the record set just last season.
Six of the past seven seasons have had at least 20 20-point comebacks. The one year that didn't (2020-21) was a shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and still racked up 19 such comebacks.
The frequency of 10-point and 15-point comebacks has increased as well. In 1997-98, teams that fell behind by double digits had an .181 winning percentage. That climbed to .250 a season ago and is at .233 this season, meaning
nearly one in every four games in which a team takes a double-digit lead ends with the other team winning.
The year before James entered the league in 2002-03, a team that trailed by 15 points in a game had a .060 winning percentage. This season, that mark has more than doubled to .133.