MIAMI — So what do you do when you are lacking Tyler Herro, Norman Powell, Andrew Wiggins and Kel’el Ware?

You give the ball at the start to Bam Adebayo and get out of the way.

In a performance that surpassed anything put together in Heat franchise history by LeBron James or Dwyane Wade or even almost anything in NBA history, Adebayo set the tone with 31 first-quarter points on the way to a seemingly unfathomable 83 in Tuesday night’s 150-129 victory over the Washington Wizards at Kaseya Center.

Mixing a variety of 3-pointers, post moves and an NBA-record amount of free throws, Adebayo initially set Heat records for points in a quarter and half.

And then, even before the end of the third quarter, Adebayo dunked for points Nos. 61 and 62, breaking James’ franchise record of 61.

And he kept on going from there. Adebayo's total is the second highest in league history, behind only the mythical 100 of Wilt Chamberlain, surpassing the 81 of Kobe Bryant for second place.

And with Adebayo’s roll, the Heat continued their roll.

The victory extended the Heat’s season-best winning streak to six, making it nine victories in their last 11 games, now a season-best eight games above .500 at 37-29.

For the Wizards, who for yet another season are doing their best to tank, it was a victory of sorts, as well, falling to 16-48.

Five Degrees of Adebayo from Tuesday night’s game:

— 1. Unreal: Adebayo closed 20 of 43 from the field, including 7 of 22 on 3-pointers, as well as 36 of 43 from the foul line, with nine rebounds and three assists.

He became the 11th player in NBA history to score at least 70 and joined Chamberlain, David Robinson and Joel Embiid as the only centers to do so.

His scoring total was the most ever against the Wizards franchise, with the previous record being 73 by Chamberlain in 1962, when counting the combined histories of the Packers/Zephyrs/Bullets/Wizards.

It was the ninth 50-point game in the Heat’s 38 seasons, following three by Wade, two by James and one apiece by Glen Rice, Alonzo Mourning and Jimmy Butler.

It was, of course, by far the highest-scoring game in the NBA this season — by far — surpassing the 56 by Denver’s Nikola Jokic on Christmas.

— 2. Sizzling start: Adebayo’s 31 points in the first quarter broke the franchise record for points in a quarter, which had been 25 twice by James.

Adebayo closed the quarter 10 of 16 from the field, including 5 of 8 on 3 pointers, as well as 6 of 7 from the foul line.

Adebayo’s fourth 3-pointer gave him 200 for his career.

To put Adebayo’s 31 first-quarter points in perspective, the Heat, as a team, entered leading the league in first-quarter scoring this season at 31.6 points. His 31 in the first quarter already tied the Heat’s scoring record for a half.

It was the highest total by an opponent in a first quarter against the Wizards in their history and the most in any quarter in the NBA this season, with the previous high being 27 by James Harden when he was with the Clippers in November.

Adebayo’s previous scoring high in a quarter over his nine seasons had been 19.

In the NBA’s era of tracking quarter scoring, since 1996-97, Adebayo’s 31 was the fifth-highest scoring quarter, with the only players to score more being Klay Thompson (37), Kevin Love (34), Carmelo Anthony (33) and Karl-Anthony Towns (32).

— 3. Then more: Adebayo's 43 points in the first half then broke the franchise record for points in any half.

The first-half record had been 31 once apiece by James, Wade and Sherman Douglas. The Heat record for points in any half had been a 37-point second half by James.

Adebayo’s previous career high for a game had been 41, with his previous high game this season of 32.

The previous highest-scoring first half this season in the NBA had been 37 points by Spurs center Victor Wembanyama.

— 4. Another one: With Herro (quad), Powell (groin), Wiggins (toe) and Ware (shoulder) out, the Heat against the Trae Young-less Wizards opened with Adebayo, Pelle Larsson, Davion Mitchell, Myron Gardner and Kasparas Jakucionis.

In their 66th game, it was the Heat’s 22nd lineup.

It was Gardner’s seventh start, with the Heat entering 4-2 when he starts.

— 5. Game flow: The Heat led 40-29 after the first quarter and 76-62 at halftime, then moving to a 113-97 lead through three quarters.

Despite falling behind by as many as 27, the Wizards then closed within 13 early in the fourth quarter, before Adebayo, Simone Fontecchio and then Dru Smith converted consecutive 3-pointers to put the Heat up 124-102.

©2026 South Florida Sun Sentinel. Visit at sun-sentinel.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.