Bam Adebayo, probably for the first time in his career, became the face of the NBA for a night after scoring 83 points in one game against the Wizards. It became the second-highest individual points haul in NBA history, with Adebayo passing Kobe Bryant’s 81-point performance from two decades ago, and naturally, the best wanted to talk to him.
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One of the GOATs of the WNBA and Adebayo’s girlfriend, A’Ja Wilson, was in attendance, which made the whole evening even more special. And as if the Las Vegas Aces baller giving Bam his credit wasn’t enough, the NBA GOAT also chimed in to speak to the Miami Heat star.
Adebayo appeared on ESPN to talk about his record-breaking game and revealed that Michael Jordan called him shortly after.
“What did he say?” asked the panel, which included Brian Windhorst and ex-baller Kendrick Perkins.
“Just congratulations. Very short and sweet. If you know Mike, he’s not talking a lot,” replied Bam.
It sounded very much like a typical chat with Jordan. He didn’t waste any time getting to the reason he called. The objective was clear. His Airness respects greatness, even if it was just for a night.
Bam says Michael Jordan reached out to him after scoring 83
“If you know Mike he’s not talking a lot” pic.twitter.com/ix1BluuG4J
— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) March 11, 2026
The cool thing about this was that even though the call was brief, you could tell how much it meant to Adebayo. He wasn’t gloating or bragging. He was simply excited to share the news, as he should be.
Jordan’s highest-scoring game was 69 points back in 1990. That was a time when the Bulls were still figuring out who they were as a franchise, before their dynasty years when they went on to win six NBA titles. Nights like that take an incredible effort. It must have taken everything MJ had to put up those numbers. From his end, he had to appreciate someone going beyond that mark.
In a league where 40-point nights barely move the needle anymore, an 83-point explosion still feels almost unreal. Some fans are already trying to discredit it because, well, no one expected Adebayo to be the guy to overtake Kobe. But isn’t that what makes the NBA great?
As for the Heat, they’ll hopefully ride this wave of momentum for the next few days, but they cannot let it distract them. They are currently sixth in the East, which means they would have a playoff berth if the season ended today. They would also like to avoid the Play-In to get some extra rest. The goal is still the ring. That is what Heat Culture is all about. But it is still nice that the famed franchise has another moment of
