Who knew that a Miami Heat vs. Washington Wizards game on a random Tuesday night would turn into one of the most historic matchups in NBA history? Bam Adebayo, currently the face of the Heat franchise, decided to channel his inner scoring machine and erupted for 83 points.
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Reactions poured in from around the league. Some were baffled, others were simply in awe. But no one seemed to take credit for Adebayo’s performance quite like Damian Lillard did.
When Lillard’s record of 71 points in a game was matched by the Heat man, Chris Haynes, on NBA’s live show, called him while live on air on The Association. And Dame was baffled by the updates his good friend was providing him with.
“Man he passed up a bunch of people,” Lillard stated, which made Haynes burst out in laughter. “Hey, I taught that boy Bam everything he knows. That’s Bam, and you know how he’s been training with A’Ja.”
In the middle of their conversation, Adebayo scored one more point which took him to 73, and Lillard, shocked, asked Haynes, “He got another free throw!?”
“I taught that boy Bam everything he knows.” @Dame_Lillard calls into The Association to discuss Bam Adebayo’s historic outing.
The Association is LIVE on NBA TV and the NBA App! ➡️ https://t.co/dadjDhnWa7 pic.twitter.com/PQwzmENlDk
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That was perhaps the only blemish on the night. Adebayo went to the free-throw line 43 times (an NBA record), scoring 36 points from there. That alone shows the kind of evening it was for the Wizards’ defense. Go anywhere near Adebayo, and the refs seemed ready to blow the whistle. Whether the calls were fair or not is another debate entirely, but the performance itself was truly an anomaly.
“He better go and get 80, man,” Lillard added. And well, Adebayo did. He finished the night with 83 points, shooting 20-of-43 from the field. In the process, he surpassed Kobe Bryant, who for two decades held the record for the second-highest point total in a single NBA game with 81 against the Toronto Raptors.
Ahead of Adebayo now stands only Wilt Chamberlain, who famously scored 100 points in a single game back in 1962. With a few more free throws and a couple more threes falling, Adebayo might even have challenged the legendary big man’s record.
