Show notes

On January 22, 2006, Kobe Bryant scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors — 55 of them in the second half, with his team down 20. For twenty years it stood as the modern standard for a single-game takeover. Then on March 10, 2026, Bam Adebayo dropped 83 on the Washington Wizards and the record books changed. On this episode of Circle The Block, hosts Rello and Cunda put the two nights side by side and ask the question the box score can't answer: which one actually mattered? The crew breaks down what Kobe was working with that night; a roster of Chris Mihm, Kwame Brown, Smush Parker and Lamar Odom; and why "team ball" stops being an argument when you're down twenty and nobody else can score. They get into the 46 shot attempts, the 18 free throws, the scoring title he won that season, and the Nick Young story about Kobe wiping a play off the clipboard and telling the huddle exactly what was about to happen. Then they turn to Bam's 83: 31 points in the first quarter, 62 through three, and a Heat team that was already up close to 30 on a Wizards squad in rebuild. The hosts dig into the uncomfortable part — the late intentional fouls to get the ball back, the 22 three-point attempts from a career defensive anchor averaging 18 a game, and whether a record chased in a blowout carries the same weight as one earned in a comeback. Plus A'ja Wilson courtside, and what happens when the most competitive woman in basketball is in your ear. The episode also goes personal: AAU summer league in Mason, Ohio, nine threes against OJ Mayo's squad, and the difference between a heat check and a real takeover moment. As always, the crew runs their odds; Pacific and Southeast Division futures, with a long look at what AD and Bub Carrington mean for Washington before Bishop Cunda takes the pulpit with the line that sums the whole episode up: if Kobe's 81 hits harder than Bam's 83, then numbers do lie. New episodes of Circle The Block drop every week. Hit subscribe and turn on notifications. 00:00 – Cold open: Kobe on the night he scored 81 00:40 – Intro with the crew 02:59 – Birthdays, safari backdrops & a David Attenborough party 05:00 – Does January 22, 2006 ring a bell? 06:02 – Circling the block on Kobe's 81-point game 06:56 – Where were you when it happened? 09:01 – 55 points in the second half 09:48 – "Give me the ball and move" 10:49 – Team? What team? The roster Kobe was carrying 11:27 – The Jordan comparison nobody asked for 12:48 – Which side of the fence are you on? 13:46 – The Nick Young story: Kobe wiping the play off the clipboard 14:29 – The scoring title season 15:06 – 46 shots, 18 free throws & what it took 16:12 – Personal takeover moments 17:18 – Nine threes against OJ Mayo in Mason, Ohio 18:00 – Reggie Miller, birthday twins & a 20-year gap 18:47 – Being the glue guy instead of the gunner 19:53 – Odds: Pacific Division futures 21:45 – Back from break 22:09 – Twenty years later, the record falls 22:49 – Circling the block on Bam Adebayo's 83-point game 23:14 – A'ja Wilson courtside 23:56 – 31 points in the first quarter 24:51 – The Wizards, AD & what that roster really is 25:20 – A 150-129 blowout: the stat-padding question 26:56 – Competitive energy at home 28:37 – Kobe at 26 by half vs. Bam at 43 29:43 – "Y'all really blowing this team out — why are you still playing?" 30:13 – The free throws at the end of both games 31:11 – 8/24 and why the number matters 31:37 – Where Rello lands on Bam's 83 32:14 – Respecting the effort, questioning the circumstance 33:08 – Odds: Southeast Division futures 34:26 – Trae Young, Bub Carrington & the Washington flip 35:49 – Bishop Cunda takes the pulpit 37:22 – "I guess numbers do lie" 38:32 – Less is more: why 81 beats 83 40:08 – Last words & picking on a rookie 42:13 – Outro ABOUT Circle The Block is a culture and nostalgia podcast hosted by Rello The Saya and Cunda, where hip hop history, throwback pop culture, sports, gaming, and current entertainment news collide. New episodes weekly.