Recently, the Miami Heat were the center of the basketball world when center Bam Adebayo had an incredible 83-point game against the Washington Wizards, giving them the second highest scoring game in league history. The game predictably sparked discussion about how "ethical" Adebayo and the Heat's methods were, but it was still a historic accomplishment for Miami's longtime defensive anchor.
On Monday, the NBA announced its players of the week for the past seven days, and to no one's surprise, Adebayo took home the honor for the Eastern Conference, as league insider Mark Stein, formerly of the Ax, reported on Twitter.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic won the award for the Western Conference.
While Adebayo is a multi-time All-Star and has had good scoring nights, few could have predicted that he would be the player to challenge, let alone break, Kobe Bryant's mark of 81 points for the second-highest scoring game in league history. Adebayo now trails only Wilt Chamberlain in scoring 100 points in a game.
Meanwhile, the Heat are looking to bounce back after their seven-game winning streak was recently snapped by the Orlando Magic. The Heat and Magic are in a race to see who can clinch the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference, with Orlando currently having a slight edge in that department, and a winning streak of their own.
While Miami certainly isn't counting on Adebayo to break records on a nightly basis, the game against Washington was a great showcase of what an elite scorer he can be when he puts his mind to it, especially when a common criticism of the star has been his lack of aggression at times throughout his career.
The Heat next take the field on Tuesday evening for an important game against the Charlotte Hornets.
