82-0 basketball game a viral sensation; can you build the perfect team?

Michael Jordan’s Bulls set the standard in the 1995-96 season with the then-greatest single-season record in NBA history: 72-10.

That mark stood for 20 years until Stephen Curry’s Golden State squad went 73-9 in the 2015-16 season.

Those records stood until now. Well, kind of.

The new viral online game 82-0 allows fans to try to build, as the website describes it, “the ultimate NBA all-time team and see if you can go 82-0!”

How does the game work? There’s a five-round draft to select five players from different teams and different eras to fill a starting lineup that could possibly go 82-0, or as close to it as possible. Team ratings are based on points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks per game, and higher stats win more games (Wilt Chamberlain is rumored to be the algorithmic cheat code to a perfect record). If you aren’t fond of either the team or era on a particular spin, you have one respin in each category per draft.

It has become a hit among both fans and players alike.

“I’ve been playing for a few days and I think the challenge of getting that 82-0 is what keeps me going,” Port Washington’s Eli Ross, 24, wrote in a text message to Newsday. “I got a record of 73-9 on my first try, thinking the game was easy, but as I kept playing I never really got close to that 82-0.

“As a [self-proclaimed] certified ball knower, it almost feels required that I not stop until I get it. The concept of a random spin for team and era makes a fun little twist at trying to get the perfect score.”

Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton posted one of his drafts on X. He had 2000s LeBron James at point guard, 2010s Kobe Bryant at shooting guard, 1990s Michael Jordan at small forward, 1980s Larry Bird at power forward and 1980s Moses Malone at center and went … 77-5.

“Retiring from 82-0 cuz stop it,” Haliburton wrote.

The classic mode is the one that has become most popular, though there is a harder “HoopIQ” mode in which you can draft players without seeing their stats.

Without further ado, let’s give the game a go.

ROUND 1: 2020s SPURS

The first team we landed on is the team the Knicks are facing in the NBA Finals. We’ll start with Victor Wembanyama: one of the best active players on the planet and this year’s unanimous Defensive Player of the Year.

ROUND 2: 1980s BULLS

Sure, Jordan won four of his five MVPs and all six of his championships in the 1990s, but the pick remains simple here, even though it’s the prior decade. We’re going with the GOAT.

ROUND 3: 2020s GRIZZLIES … RESPIN THE TEAM INTO THE 2020s WIZARDS … RESPIN THE ERA INTO THE 1990s WIZARDS

The third time wasn’t the charm. After originally landing on the 2020s Grizzlies, we decided it would be best to stay in the decade and try our luck with another team. Well, we weren’t a huge fan of the 2020s Wizards, either — though in hindsight we probably should have picked Russell Westbrook, who averaged a triple-double in 2020-21, his lone season in Washington — and changed the era. The 1990s Wizards (then named the Bullets until the 1997-98 season) brought us Bernard King, who was an All-Star in the 1990-91 season.

ROUND 4: 2020s HORNETS

Things didn’t turn out optimally after our third round, as we landed on the Hornets of this decade without any respins left to use. LaMelo Ball, the 2021 Rookie of the Year and a 2022 All-Star, was the selection.

ROUND 5: 1980s CLIPPERS

With only the power forward spot remaining, Terry Cummings was the choice. Cummings isn’t an all-time great but had a strong run in the 1980s, being named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1983 and earning All-Star and All-NBA nods in 1985 and 1989.

SURVEY SAYS… 

Well, we didn’t go 82-0. But 72-10 with an A-plus, historic rating? We’ll take it. Besides, there is no limit to how many times you can play the game per day . . . 82-0 might just be in our future.