Miami Heat: Bam Adebayo Has, Seemingly, Figured Out That It’s Pretty Simple
This is what you’ve always asked for from Bam Adebayo. Prior to the season beginning, the notion here was that he needed to average, at least, 15 field goal attempts per contest.
It’s not about the makes or misses for Bam Adebayo though, it’s about getting up the looks and it always has been. He works hard, he plays both sides of the ball, he’s uber-athletic, he can, and always wants to make the right play.
If he just takes the looks, good things are bound to happen. It not only makes defenses react to him differently, but it allows his teammates to use his aggression to help themselves get to their own stuff, which ultimately helps the team.
Here is another excerpt from Goldberg’s piece and a well-publicized thought from the Miami Heat’s team president, Pat Riley, from before the season. The NBA’s Godfather had pointed words on his star big man.
The quote closes with another pointed thought from the subject of the piece.
"This is what team president Pat Riley anticipated from Adebayo before the season when he said, “I think you might just see a flat-out scorer this year… It isn’t getting permission from your head coach, it’s having the offense evolve where it gives you permission to play.” For many reasons, it took nearly three-quarters of the season for Adebayo and his teammates to get to this point but something, perhaps during the flight from Boston to Toronto, has clicked. Adebayo is less passive — less patient even — and quick to go to his bag. “Just being aggressive,” Adebayo explained after scoring 21 points against the Wizards last week. “Not too much to overthink.”"
It’s really as simple as that for Bam, well, simple as those things. Pat Riley spoke of not “getting permission” but having something “evolve”.
He used the word “offense” here to speak to Bam and to say this. “You don’t need permission or anyone to allow you to do anything, you are capable of anything on the floor, you just have to go do it.”
Ironically and funny enough, this is a similar notion that Bam echoed in his part of the above quote. It’s really as simple as that for him.
For a guy as talented, skilled, big, and athletic as he is, it’s about “just being aggressive”. That’s that thing that all NBA superstars and first option types have, regardless of the scenario.
While they can do other things, such as get their teammates involved like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, or Jimmy Butler even, they also can flip the switch and make it all about them—which is to become selfish in the best way for the betterment of the team.
Bam seems to be in the midst of figuring that out and you know what? You just absolutely love to see it.
Most importantly of all though—THIS Bam Adebayo makes them an absolute title contender.