Did Bam Adebayo Set NBA Single-Game Free Throw Record? Heat Star's Historic Night By the Numbers

Entering Tuesday's game against the Washington Wizards, the Miami Heat's season-high for free-throw attempts was 36 from a Nov. 10 contest against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

That is no longer the case after Bam Adebayo tied that mark by himself Tuesday.

The big man shocked the NBA world when he led his team to a 150-129 victory with 83 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks behind 20-of-43 shooting from the field and an astounding 36-of-43 shooting from the free-throw line.

Nobody in NBA history has made or attempted that many free throws in a game:

ESPN provided a look at some of the other numbers behind his performance, which moved him into second place in league history for points in a game. While Wilt Chamberlain still holds the record with 100 points, Adebayo passed Kobe Bryant's mark of 81 from January 2006.

He didn't pass Chamberlain in points, but he did join him as the only players in NBA history to finish a game with 20 made field goals and 25 made free throws.

Adebayo's previous career-high was 41, but he surpassed that in the first half Tuesday with 43. He also broke LeBron James' franchise record of 61 points in a game.

There have been plenty of offensive fireworks this season around the NBA, as Adebayo became the 12th different player to reach the 50-point mark in a game in 2025-26. If two more players do so before the end of the season, it will tie the record of 14 different 50-point scorers in a single campaign.

Adebayo's free throws were quite important as he joined that group considering he became the first player in league history to score 70 or more points while connecting on less than 50 percent of his shots from the field.

Wizards-Heat Full Highlights

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It was certainly a performance to remember, especially since Adebayo is not known as a high-volume scorer who routinely threatens 40-plus points a night. He is a three-time All-Star and excellent two-way player, but he didn't seem like a likely candidate to score this many points since he has never averaged more than 20.4 in a season.

The free throws might have been even more unlikely, as he entered Tuesday's game averaging just 4.8 a night this season.

That is certainly going to increase after the latest win.