With the Washington Wizards hanging on to the 10th seed and the final play-in tournament spot by the skin of their teeth, they will need huge performances from the likes of Kristaps Porzingis, Bradley Beal, and Kyle Kuzma to hold off teams nipping at their heels, such as the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers. And during their Wednesday night contest against the Atlanta Hawks, the Wizards got just that following a Unicorn performance that's deserving of a victory.

In around 38 minutes of action, Porzingis dropped a career-high 43 point-effort on 17-22 shooting from the field (77.3 percent) and 7-10 from deep to go along with five rebounds and five assists. As wild a stat line as that may be, it unfortunately did not end up in a victory for the Wizards as they lost to the Hawks, 122-120.

Nevertheless, Kristaps Porzingis' latest monster effort allowed him to achieve a feat that no one in NBA history has ever accomplished. Porzingis became just the first 7-footer in NBA history to tally multiple games of 40+ points and 5+ three-pointers made. Porzingis dropped 41 points on six triples against the Minnesota Timberwolves on November 28, 2022.

There's a reason that Porzingis earned the Unicorn distinction back in 2016. While there have been plenty of stretch big men in NBA history, with Dirk Nowitzki being one of the pioneers for the sweet-shooting 7-footer archetype, Porzingis' volume of attempts from deep at his size makes him such a unique player to defend.

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Still, it will be disappointing for Kristaps Porzingis to see this monster performance go to waste, especially against another Eastern Conference playoff contender in the Hawks. Outside of Kyle Kuzma and Bradley Beal, barely any other Wizards came to play on offense. Meanwhile, Trae Young carved up the Wizards' defense to take control late in the game.

There is considerable talent in the Wizards' roster, and as Porzingis showed, any one of their three main weapons can take over at any given night. However, for the Wizards to make the leap out of mediocrity, they will have to make a few more additions. But at least for tonight, Porzingis showed that there is something to build upon here in DC.