Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo had himself a historic night as he led the Heat to a 150-129 victory over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night. With 83 points for the game, Adebayo officially broke Kobe Bryant‘s 81-point record, passing him for the most points scored in a single game.
Even though this is an impressive feat, former NBA player Gilbert Arenas was certain that Bam Adebayo’s achievement would not be well-received by Kobe Bryant fans. While speaking about this on his livestream, Arenas stated:
“I don’t think the Kobe community is going to appreciate [this]. Bam, I’m sorry, brother. You, just now, officially, are probably going to be celebrated as 83, but are probably going to be hated from one side of a community because they don’t have that record no more. The Kobe fans, they’re not liking this.”
Arenas couldn’t hold back his laughter when acknowledging Bam Adebayo’s situation. Although the Heat forward had himself a truly incredible performance, there was a greater likelihood that he would face scrutiny only because he broke Kobe Bryant’s record.
Surprisingly, it would appear that Gilbert Arenas’ statement about Bam Adebayo is already coming true.
After Adebayo broke the record, Lakers fans in attendance at the Crypto.com Arena let out a collective boo when the announcer revealed that Kobe Bryant’s long-standing record had been broken.
Lakers fans booing their announcer after he mentioned Bam Adebayo broke Kobe Bryant’s 81-point game record 💀
(via @JHWill, h/t @TheNBABase)pic.twitter.com/vnJMVf9iXB
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) March 11, 2026
In addition to this, 76ers players Kelly Oubre Jr. and Cameron Payne also shared fairly partisan reactions to Bam Adebayo’s 83-point performance.
When speaking with the media about Adebayo’s record-breaking game, Oubre Jr., a Kobe Bryant fan, responded:
“I’m going to say, it’s definitely legendary… Shoutout to Bam. He’s just inserted himself in history. I’m kinda salty he bested Kobe. One of my favorite players for sure. But I’ll just say this, man, Joel [Embiid] did it efficiently and did it in three quarters.”
Although Oubre Jr. gave credit where it was due, his compliment seemed disingenuous, as it also took away from Adebayo’s achievement. In comparison, Payne, who was coming off a career-high night himself, had a more earnest response.
“Bam can’t take my night. Shout out to Bam, I’m a big-time Kobe fan, that’s huge for anyone to score that many points in a game. But I’m taking it. This is my night, March 10th, this is all me.”
There was no doubt in Arenas’ mind that Adebayo had already been drug tested after the game, which would be fair considering this season’s averages of 18.9 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. But considering that the Heat star shot 36-43 from the charity stripe, setting the record for the most free throws attempted in a single game in the process, the milestone seems more genuine.
For the most part, Adebayo has received nothing but praise from the NBA community, with several stars and legends pouring in to congratulate him on his record-breaking night. Having firmly cemented his place in NBA history, the Heat star will undoubtedly look back on this performance as one of the high points of his professional career.
