Bam Adebayo might have walked into the Kaseya Center on Tuesday night as a top defender, but he walked out with a record-breaking stat. In a thrilling 150-129 victory over the Washington Wizards, the Miami Heat’s center showcased his career’s best performance, dropping 83 points against the crumbling defense.
This was Heat’s sixth consecutive win, bringing their record to 8-2 for the last 10 games. They are currently placed 6th in the East with a 37-29 record.
Giannis Antetokounmpo Reacts to Bam Adebayo’s Explosive 83 Points
Adebayo’s career high of 83 points surpassed Kobe Bryant’s legendary 81-point mark from 2006 to claim the seat for the second-highest single-game total in NBA history, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain’s 100. A lot of congratulatory messages poured in from all over the league, including from Milwaukee Bucks’ superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Adebayo’s performance against the Wizards was a masterclass. He finished the night with 83 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists while shooting 20-of-43 from the field and 7-of-22 from beyond the arc.
However, the highlighted peak remains his dominant performance at the charity stripe, where he converted 36 of 43 free throws and set an NBA single-game record for free throws made and attempted.
Talking about Bam Adebayo’s spectacular 83 points and free-throw record, Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo said, “It doesn’t matter how you get there. All that matters is that you got it. Like in 30 years from now, nobody’s going to remember how many free throws he shot.”
He added, “I don’t think I remember how many shots Kobe had or how many free throws he made or threes. All you remember is 81. Wilt, 100. You don’t remember how they scored. So, at the end of the day, he got 83 points.”
Giannis Antetokounmpo on Bam Adebayo’s 83 point game:
“It doesn’t matter how you get there. All that matters is that you got it. Like in 30 years from now, nobody’s going to remember how many free throws he shot. I don’t think I remember how many shots Kobe had or how many free… pic.twitter.com/XejycjSKiM
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) March 11, 2026
Houston Rockets’ Kevin Durant also expressed his amazement and said, “I couldn’t believe it when I was hearing it in real time. I looked at the stat sheet and it was pretty crazy. [He had] 40 shots, 40 free throws, 20 3s — that takes a lot of stamina, man. … Huge accomplishment. It will be something we talk about forever.”
Bam Adebayo was relentless in his approach to reach the rim and scored 31 points in the first quarter. By half-time, the two-time Olympic gold medalist already surpassed his previous career high of 41 by reaching 43 points, and had 63 by the end of the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, he converted 3-of-8 from the field and 1-of-6 from deep.
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The Wizards’ defense struggled to find an answer to Adebayo’s explosive performance, and the constant fouling only made it worse, allowing him to capitalize on the charity points to break Dwight Howard’s previous record of 39 free throw attempts, and Wilt Chamberlain and Adrian Dantley jointly shared 28 made free throws.
Some might argue Adebayo’s 83 points were due to the sheer volume of free throws, but as Giannis said, “It doesn’t matter how you get there.” History will only remember the 83 points.
