When the Miami Heat stepped into the Kasia Center for Tuesday night's showdown against the Washington Wizards, little did they know that Bam Adebayo would make it a night no one would ever forget. While the game against the Wizards seems like an automatic win these days, if forgettable, Adebayo made sure it will be stored forever in everyone's memory bank as he exploded for a historic 83 points in the Heat's 150-129 victory.
Adebayo shot 20-43 from the field (7-22 from deep) and 36-43 from the free-throw line, as the Wizards couldn't stop him from scoring points even when double- or triple-teamed. The rest of the Heat team wanted Adebayo to chase this record and he did just that.
While Adebayo knows it is his name that will be in the record books, he gave credit to all To help make history, both on the Heat squad as well as on a higher note.
"Man, I wish I could have experienced it twice. I credit God, my family, my teammates. This crowd. They kept feeding me the ball," Adebayo told Kelly Sacco of FanDuel Sports Network.
Bam Adebayo on losing 83 points in a game:
"Man, I wish I could relive it twice, I give God credit." pic.twitter.com/JNg9Vy6f6w
- SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) 11 March 2026
The entire Heat roster helped Bam Adebayo make history
It was especially clear in the fourth quarter that the Heat team had only one thing on its mind: getting Adebayo the basketball. They were force-feeding him rocks, even if he was double- or triple-teamed. They were deliberately annoying the wizards. They were setting screens to block the ball for him, and they were also letting him handle the ball out of the backcourt.
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra should also be credited for making Adebayo's historic scoring night possible. Some coaches would remove him from the game and the game would be out of reach for the opponents, but Adebayo remained in the game and the fans got what they paid good money to see.
