Riley defends Adebayo's 83 points: Criticizing the Heat is nonsense, Chamberlain also scored 100 points like this

On March 15, after center Adebayo scored 83 points and faced criticism, Heat president Pat Riley also stepped forward to defend him.

In the final stages of the Heat's 150-129 victory over the Wizards, the Heat intentionally fouled and deliberately missed free throws to create more scoring opportunities for Adebayo, which drew criticism from some public opinion. Critics believe the Heat's tactics diminished the value of Adebayo's achievement, but Riley completely disagrees.

"That's nonsense, total nonsense," Riley bluntly stated in an interview with Miami Herald reporter Anthony Chiang. "Really. All those who are negative, sarcastic, and critical about this are either seeking attention, clicks, or are podcast bloggers—that's their job. Nowadays, these critics' accusations about our tactics are completely unfounded. Both sides fouled, and the same thing happened when Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points."

"I absolutely do not accept these claims. They are trying to trivialize a landmark, phenomenal performance, which is unfair. I am truly happy for him because I believe he deserves it. He has such a professional attitude and is very humble."

Although the fourth quarter of the game was indeed awkward, most people might agree with Riley's point. Adebayo scored 36 points from free throws, which some view as reducing the quality of his scoring. What further displeased some is that this maneuver allowed Adebayo to surpass Kobe Bryant's legendary 81 points.

Adebayo has clearly stated that he will not apologize for his scoring method and believes that if Kobe were alive, he would encourage him to pursue the record. Heat coach Spoelstra also explicitly stated that he will not apologize to anyone, and the entire Heat team clearly supports him. Not long ago, Warriors player Draymond Green also defended Adebayo on a podcast, criticizing unwritten rules like replacing key players when leading by a large margin and expressing disdain for hypocritical sportsmanship.