Bradley Beal insisted "I don't give a damn" after tying a franchise points record for the Washington Wizards in their defeat to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Beal's career-high 60 points on Wednesday could not prevent a 141-136 loss at Wells Fargo Center as the Wizards slipped to 2-6 for the season.
The 27-year-old was 20-of-35 on shooting, including seven-of-10 from three-point range, as he equalled Gilbert Arenas' franchise best against the Los Angeles Lakers back in 2006.
Still, the two-time All Star took little pride in recording a personal best in another loss.
"I'm p***** off," Beal said. "I'm mad. I don't count [them]. Any of my career highs, they've been in losses. So I don't give a damn. You can throw it right out the window with the other two or three I've had.
"I just want to win. Sometimes you might be able to score 40, 50, 60, whatever the case may be, but I just want to win, whatever that looks like. We came up a little bit short."
Beal's spectacular 57 points in the first 36 minutes proved futile as Philadelphia closed out a high-scoring contest, making 61.7 per cent from the field throughout.
Washington tied the scores at 119 each after having trailed by 10 at the start of the fourth quarter, but Joel Embiid led the 76ers to a strong finish, sinking a three-point jumper from 28 feet.
"I think they got stops and made more plays than we did down the stretch," Beal said when asked what made the difference late on. "I think Embiid hit a tough three... they were making a lot of shots. They hit a lot of tough shots.
"They shot 60 per cent from the field and 62 per cent from three. You can't win a game like that."
For Embiid, it was all part of the service.
"They pay me to take over the game," he said after making 38 points, eight rebounds and five assists. "They pay me to dominate. That's my job.
"I always give credit to my teammates. [But] I finished."