Isaiah Thomas channeled his inner Kobe Bryant in the Crawsover Pro-Am in Seattle on Sunday, scoring a whopping 81 points in a dazzling display of shot-making by the two-time All-Star. That matched the second-highest single-game scoring mark in the NBA set by the late, great Bryant against the Toronto Raptors back in 2006.
Thomas has never failed to show his admiration for his idol Bryant, who tragically passed away in a helicopter crash in January of last year. He wore Bryant's iconic No. 24 during his short three-game stint with the New Orleans Pelicans, who signed Thomas to a 10-day contract last season.
Thomas averaged 7.7 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 16.1 minutes of action during those games. He scored in double-figures in two out of the three games he appeared in, but the Pelicans decided not to renew his contract.
Thomas scores 81 to match his idol's scoring record in the NBA
Before his offensive explosion on Sunday, Thomas posted a message last Friday on Twitter that said, "Miss my guy @kobebryant." NBA great Jamal Crawford also had an inkling of what was about to unfold, with the Seattle hoops legend saying to get to the venue early as Thomas is going to put on a legendary performance.
That he did and so much more. Thomas was on fire right from the get-go, erupting for 40 points by half-time. One play took the crowd's breath away in the opening half when Thomas delivered a killer crossover that sent his defender sliding four feet away.
In over 553 games that he has played in the NBA, including the postseason, Thomas has never reached the 40-point mark in the first half. Thomas did score 40 points as a member of the Boston Celtics, accomplishing the feat in a memorable performance in the 2017 playoffs, which was one point shy of John Havlicek's record that he set in the 1973 postseason.
He continued his hot shooting in the second half as he finished the game with 81 points. The crowd couldn't believe what they just saw as they gave Thomas a standing ovation for his incredible performance.
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Celtics rumored to sign Thomas this offseason
Thomas is on a mission to show NBA teams that he still has the game to compete in basketball's top professional league. He scored 37 points in his Drew League debut back in July before setting the AEBL scoring record with a 65-point gem just a week later.
One team that's rumored to be interested in signing Thomas this offseason is his former team, the Boston Celtics. Brad Stevens, who is now the president of basketball operations for Boston, is one of Thomas' biggest fans. Thomas balled out during the 2017 season when Stevens was the Celtics coach, averaging 28.9 points, 5.9 assists, and 2.7 rebounds per game to lead Boston to the best record in the Eastern Conference.
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