The NBA alerts on my phone were heavy.
Bam Scorhing Hot in 1st Half. Scores 41!
Bam Goes for 60!
70 for Adebayo!
83 Points for Bam on Historic Night!
It all felt, well, surreal. My immediate thoughts were, "Who are they playing? The Wizards? The Nets?
Ahhh, the Wizards.
But, 83? What?!
I didn't see the game. I won't pretend to have. Often lost in sports is the context and overall feel for the night. If Bam were a Knick, and I was watching, in the building, or following along, I too would want him to go for every bit he could have.
I still remember Melo's 62. Everything about that night, right down to the triggering thought of Ellie Goulding's "Burn", which was the featured song on Friday Night Knicks. January 24, 2014.
If I even hear that song in the waiting room at the Dentist's office, I'm thinking of Melo's bender for 62.
You're weird, man.
There were others as well - Randle's 57 before he burned out, and Jalen Brunson's 61 a few years ago.
Those nights mean something to fans. Sometimes, even more than we realize.
Despite the idea of wrapping my mind around Adebayo going off like that, truthfully, I didn't think he had this in his bag, what gives me pause in the entire ordeal is one thing: the intentional fouling and blatant missed free throws to prolong the game.
It wasn't the insane eye-popping amount of free throws he was given on this night (40 FT Attempts). From the clips and NBA Insiders (that I trust), a lot of those fouls were authentic. And that happens when we see hoopers jump into these rare zones.
83 points are insanely difficult. No matter what. There's a reason he sits second for most points in a game as he brilliantly (and marketably) put it - "it's Wilt, Me, and Kobe".
I apologize to absolutely no one. Period
- Erik Spoelstra, Miami Heat Head Coach
But watching a team intentionally foul the lowly Wizards while being up 20+ points to increase the amount of possessions and opportunities for Bam to reach the milestone felt, well, a bit fabricated and inauthentic.
And it's unfortunate, because he still had an amazing 70+ point game, which still would have entered rare NBA lore. But the record, and passing Kobe, adds all sorts of doubt to the entire mix.
I'm genuinely shocked the Wizards didn't just surround Adebayo with all five players and force someone else to score. At that point, the essence of basketball was already out the window, and it was clear what was going on. But eh...
Even more shocking is that the head coach of the Miami Heat, Erik Spoelstra, a basketball fan's basketball coach, allowed, approved, and continues to support what went down.
Wild stuff.
What all of this boils down to - with everyone's opinions and takes involved (of course) - is the continuation of lines being blurred in all phases of sports when it comes to sportsmanship, what's within the culture, and what is acceptable gamesmanship. Bam's 83 points and how he got there certainly elevates the discussion to another level.
My two certainties coming away from Bam's 83 are the following:
Miami Heat fans will never forget it - like Ellie Goulding bellowing "and we gonna let it burn, burn, burn" for this fan.
But most importantly, the door is wide open for more shenanigans for someone to top this. And we all know it's coming.
I just don't think the latter is good for the game.