By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Who would’ve thought that a player who moved to second all time among the NBA’s single-game scoring leaders would receive tons of bashing from the basketball world?
Moments after Bam Adebayo’s historic 83-point performance against the Washington Wizards, several NBA coaches, players and retired legends took time to criticize what transpired, claiming that the Miami Heat superstar’s scoring clinic was a fluke and will never be memorable.
It seemed like everything was going fine across three quarters, but the backlash came in the fourth frame, specifically with what the Miami Heat coaching staff did for Adebayo to chase Kobe Bryant’s 81-point record.
According to seven-time NBA champion Robert Horry, it got to the point where Miami didn’t respect the game.
“83 points is impressive. I think there were moments in this game where it was not respected. Still, 83 points is a lot, I appreciate the effort,” Horry said.
Houston Rockets head coach Ime Udoka also had something to say, telling the press in a sarcastic manner that Adebayo was able to achieve that because he was playing against the Wizards.
“First thing you think is, ‘How?’” Udoka said.
“You know, because of — not because of him but because of the way he plays. And I saw only six made threes, but 40 free throws or something like that tells the story right there. And the Washington Wizards.”
Meanwhile, Frank Isola, a veteran NBA analyst, slammed the Heat, specifically for how they utilized Adebayo in the fourth quarter, despite Miami already having established a big lead.
“Michael Jordan’s and Kobe Bryant’s career highs for free throw attempts in a regular season game is 27. Meanwhile, in Miami, give me a break. Bam currently has 41. That’s Heat Culture?” Isola wrote.
Phoenix Suns forward Collin Gillespie also went viral after this statement on Adebayo: “They told me when I came in here. A couple of people also texted me. But yeah, I don’t really care.”
To all hoopers out there, did Adebayo deserve the bashing? Or are they just salty that Bryant’s record was broken after 10 years?
