Bam Adebayo burst onto the scene in his 3rd NBA season for the Miami Heat. Here is his season recap, individual grade, and superlative.
The Miami Heat traded Hassan Whiteside away last offseason, partially because of well… him, but also partially to give emerging big man Bam Adebayo more of a role on the team moving forward. What happened next, no one saw coming so quickly.
Adebayo wasted no time establishing himself with Whiteside out of the picture. Despite being just 22 years old at the time, Adebayo became the Miami Heat’s second-best player night in and night out. The only exception to that would be when he was their best player on any given night.
Bam’s smooth transition into this role alongside Jimmy Butler cannot go underappreciated. Butler joined the Heat with somewhat of a reputation as a bad teammate, to say the least.
Whispers suggested trouble had been between himself and younger teammates. Butler, with the help of Adebayo, quickly dispelled that talk.
The Miami Heat had an All-Star in Bam Adebayo in his first season as the full-time starter.
Bam was rightfully picked for his first career All-Star game on his way to earning a spot on the NBA’s All-Defensive 2nd Team. During the regular season, he averaged 15.9 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 5.1 assists to go along with 1.1 steals and 1.3 blocks.
Season Grade: A+
Without any hesitation, Bam receives an “A+” for his season performance. That’s not to say he doesn’t have areas of his game to work on, but instead considers realistic expectations entering the season. He shattered those.
To become arguably the best player on a Conference Champion in such quick fashion is unheard of. Remember, he was picked 14th overall in the 2017 NBA Draft.
The sky is the limit moving forward for the Heat big man, in fact, he’s just getting started. In case you haven’t heard it before, Bam has no ceiling.
Well, except for the sky. Here is his superlative for the 2019-20 NBA season.
Most Likely to scream his own name while swatting your dunk attempt.
Bam is a long-term centerpiece for the Heat organization and it will be intriguing to see what steps he can take this offseason after seeing how he’s progressed in previous offseasons. It will be a shorter break, obviously, but he’s already at an all-star level.
Small improvements turn All-Stars into superstars and Bam appears to be well on his way to achieving greatness in South Beach. And you guessed it… we just love to see it!