Star NBA players like LeBron James take to social media to praise the Miami player’s incredible scoring achievement.
Posted on March 11, 2026
Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo’s 83-point performance against the Washington Wizards on Tuesday, the second-highest scoring game in NBA history, was a historic stat line no one saw coming.
The Heat star shot 20-43 from the floor and 7-22 from beyond the three-point line. Thirty-six of his 83 points came from the free throw line (36 of 43).
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Entering the game, Adebayo was averaging just 18.9 points per night this season, putting him outside the league’s top 40 scorers.
The 28-year-old now trails only the legendary Wilt Chamberlain for most points scored in a single NBA game after surpassing the late Kobe Bryant’s 81-point masterpiece against the Toronto Raptors, set in 2006.
After the game, Adebayo spoke about the importance of passing Bryant, whom he idolized as a child.
“Being 83 and (Bryant) passing away, in my mind it’s like, what would he say to me? Because I always wanted to have a conversation with him,” Adebayo said. “He’ll probably say, ‘Do it again.’
“It’s just a surreal moment to be in the company of someone you idolized as a child.”
Here are some reactions to the Miami big man’s incredible scoring feat from some of the NBA’s biggest names:
“BAM BAM BAM,” LeBron James, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, wrote on X.
“Brother, what?” Jalen Brunson said in disbelief.
Former Miami Heat legend Dwayne Wade wrote: “83 for Cap”
Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant, who was asked about Adebayo’s achievement in a postgame press conference on Tuesday, said:
“I couldn’t believe it when I found out in real time. He got 30 in the first quarter… Congratulations to Bam. I know how much work he puts in.
“I looked at the stat sheet and it’s pretty crazy, 40 shots, 40 free throws, 20 three-pointers, that takes a lot of stamina, that takes a lot of energy to not only go out and make those shots, but to set the record to surpass Kobe (Bryant) as the second leading scorer in the history of the game,” Durant added.
