100. That elusive number. The record that seems impossible to reach let alone break. Ever since 1962, we’ve only seen a good bunch of 60-point games, a handful of 70-point games, and one 80-point game. Kobe Bryant accomplished this feat by dropping 81 against the Toronto Raptors in 2006. This was the highest scoring game since Wilt Chamberlain’s untouchable 100-point game. Sports fans figured this was the ceiling for the new generation of the NBA, that 81 would be the realistic yet near-impossible record to chase. It held true because no one since 2006 was able to score more than that. The closest game that we’ve had was Luka Doncic scoring a whopping 73 in 2024 against the Atlanta Hawks. All of this would change however on March 10, 2026.

In a regular season matchup against the Washington Wizards, Miami Heat forward Bam Adebayo started the game off hot by scoring 31 in just the 1st quarter alone, shooting an efficient 10-16 from the field, including an impressive 5-8 from the 3-point line. He would then finish the half with 43 points, already beating his career high in points. As the game progressed, however, fans would describe his scoring efforts as “shameless” due to him scoring 36 off free throws alone. Despite the criticism, nothing can change the record books as he finished the game scoring 83 points. After 20 years, Bryant’s 81-point game was dethroned as the second-highest scoring game in NBA history. 

Adebayo walked off the court that night becoming undisputed and permanently etched his name in the history books. But like I mentioned prior, this game was tainted by mass criticism from fans across the association and beyond. Basketball purists began naming this performance a disgrace to the sport. So why did Adebayo receive so much backlash? Is it justified? Well, at a technical level I can agree that his efforts became shameless. It was quite obvious as the game progressed that he became more and more desperate to pass Bryant’s record. His teammates were fouling the Wizards so they could get the ball back, or they would miss their free throws on purpose. Yes, I can absolutely understand the backlash and how it isn’t ethical basketball. My argument, though, is who cares? Adebayo had a chance to reach glory and he took it. Throughout the season, we see numerous performances where if the player stayed and continued letting the hot hand fly that they would have a record breaking performance. So can we really be mad at Adebayo for taking that opportunity? It also wasn’t entirely his fault as the Wizards were playing awful defense on him and refused to send another man on him until he reached 70, in which they sent a triple team. These triple teams resulted in him inevitably being fouled which would then send him to the charity stripe. 

All in all, his name will stand in the record books as scoring the second-highest game in NBA history. Was this as impressive as Bryant’s 81? No. Was this as impressive as Doncic’s 73? No. But in the most competitive and skilled era of basketball that we have seen he scored an 83 ball. Neither the amount of criticism that he received nor the validity of his performance will change the fact that he is now the man who has gotten closest to Chamberlain’s untouchable 100-point game.