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Most rebounds in a playoff game

Most rebounds in a playoff game

SALT LAKE CITY – 1997: Hakeem Olajuwon #34 of the Houston Rockets smiles against the Utah Jazz circa 1997.

The NBA’s biggest games have featured some monster performances on the glass, with three players tied for the top of the single-game leaderboard with 26 rebounds. Bismack Biyombo joins Dwight Howard and Hakeem Olajuwon as the youngest players to achieve this feat in 2016. We’ll break down the greatest rebounding performances in NBA playoff history

26 rebounds: Bismack Biyombo (2016), Dwight Howard (2015), Hakeem Olajuwon (1988)

26 was the high mark for rebounds in a single NBA playoff game, with three players accomplishing the feat. Olajuwon broke the record in 1988 when he knocked down 26 boards in the Western Conference finals against the Mavericks. This record stood for almost 30 years until Dwight Howard grabbed 26 rebounds. Interestingly, both Olajuwon and Howard were members of the Rockets and set this record every time against the Mavericks. Biyombo was the next member to join the club a year after Dwight Howard when he did so in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cavaliers.

25 rebounds: Jonas Valanciunas (2022), Tim Duncan (2002), Hakeem Olajuwon (1987)

Unsurprisingly, Olajuwon is a staple on this list as one of the best rebounders in history. He set the then-record 25 boards against the SuperSonics in the Western Conference semifinals, and that record stood until he broke it again a year later. Tim Duncan grabbed 25 boards against the Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals, but the Spurs had to wait another year to reach the mountaintop. Jonas Valanciunas, then with the Pelicans, joined the 25-rebound club against the Suns in Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Playoffs.

24 rebounds: Dwight Howard (2009), Ben Wallace (2003, 2004), Tim Duncan (2003), Shaquille O’Neal (2000), Charles Oakley (1994), Charles Barkley (1993), Ralph Sampson (1985)

Several players have reached the 24-rebound mark in playoff games and are among the best rebounders the game has ever seen. Ralph Sampson set new standards as a member of the Rockets in 1985, but was surpassed two years later by teammate Hakeem Olajuwon.

The Round Mound of Rebound himself, Charles Barkley, joined the 24-rebound club in 1993, and Charles Oakley did likewise the following postseason.

Shaq started the 2000s with a dominant performance on the boards against the Pacers in Game 2 of the 2000 NBA Finals. Tim Duncan followed suit in the Spurs’ title run in 2003. Ben Wallace grabbed 24 rebounds in a game in consecutive playoffs during the Pistons’ impressive run in that era, culminating in the 2004 NBA championship.

23 rebounds: Anthony Davis (2024, 2023), Kevon Looney (2023), Giannis Antetokounmpo (2019), Tim Duncan (2008, 2003), Shaquille O’Neal (2003), Charles Barkley (1999, 1995), Larry Smith (1987)

Golden State’s Larry Smith became the first to record a postseason game with 23 rebounds in 1987. Since then, six other players have recorded that exact number of boards during a postseason game. Most recently, active players such as Anthony Davis, Kevon Looney and Giannis Antetokounmpo have reached this milestone. Davis has done this in consecutive postseasons and still has an active streak left this year.