Heat’s Adebayo on goals: ‘Just because I got money doesn’t mean that I got complacent’
There might be a wide 17-year age gap between 23-year-old Bam Adebayo and 40-year-old Udonis Haslem, but they’re as close as any two players on the Miami Heat’s roster.
“It’s one of the most transparent and thorough brotherhoods. It’s thorough and authentic,” Adebayo said of his friendship with Haslem. “I just appreciate that because he’s honest with me. My whole life, I’ve always wanted people to be honest with me. Tell me the truth and don’t sugarcoat it. He’s one of those dudes where if it was good or bad, it meant well. At the end of the day, he’s just trying to help me be the best that I can be. It shows, you can see it. When he calls me, it’s not just to call me about some [expletive].”
So when Adebayo turned to Haslem during the middle of an offseason workout for advice on whether he should hold off on signing a contract extension this year to become a restricted free agent next offseason, Haslem gave him his honest answer.
“He only had one answer for me, and that was the right answer that I wanted to hear,” Adebayo said, with the Heat opening its season Wednesday against the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center (7 p.m., Fox Sports Sun). “It was like, ‘Man, get your money.’ So there was no waiting until next year just because of the simple fact that next year is a what if. Like what if COVID happens? There’s COVID, it’s a pandemic. You don’t know what’s going to go on next year. So it wasn’t about anything with basketball. It was about job security. ‘This is your life. You got to take care of your momma.’”
There was outside speculation that the Heat might ask Adebayo to be patient this offseason and instead sign him to a new contract next offseason in order to maximize 2021 cap space.
But that never happened, as Adebayo signed the richest contract in Heat history last month — a five-year, $163 million max contract extension that could grow to as much as $195 million and begins in the 2021-22 season. Other members of Adebayo’s 2017 NBA Draft class agreed to max extensions with their respective teams days before Adebayo: Boston’s Jayson Tatum, Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox and Utah’s Donovan Mitchell.
“It was the topic of a lot of the conversations that we had, as far as just what comes with being a max player and what the expectations will be,” Haslem said. “Also, about understanding the patience side of it. Watching all these guys sign their max deals and all these guys signing their extensions like Tatum and Fox, and all the guys that you played with and grew up with are signing their deals, and your time hasn’t come yet.
“So just telling him and making sure he stays patient, understanding the process and that he’s well worth the money. ... But my focus for Bam was more so making sure that this season coming up is even better. Don’t just stop at last year and having a breakout year and being an All-Star and getting an extension. The bar has been raised. We’re going to expect more, we’re going to want more and you’re going to have to give us more.”
Adebayo (6-9, 255) will try to do more this season after averaging career highs in points (15.9), rebounds (10.2), assists (5.1), steals (1.1), blocks (1.3) and minutes (33.6) last season on his way to earning his first All-Star Game appearance and a spot on the league’s All-Defensive second team in his first year as a full-time NBA starter. Adebayo and NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo were the only two players in the league who averaged at least 15 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, one steal and one block during the regular season.
Adebayo averaged 17.8 points on 56.4 percent shooting, 10.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 19 games (19 starts) during the Heat’s impressive playoff run that ended two wins short of an NBA championship.
“There’s no [expletive] with me,” Adebayo said. “Just because I got money doesn’t mean that I got complacent. That’s not how my mind works. If anything, once you get paid, that puts a target on your back. So I thrive with that. That should make you wake up and work. I got paid, but there are other dudes behind me thinking they should have got what I got.”
Adebayo plans to showcase a new skill this season by consistently taking and making a midrange jumper he began using during the postseason. He was 17 of 37 (45.9 percent) on midrange shots in the playoffs after shooting 22.3 percent from midrange in the regular season.
During the Heat’s two-game preseason, Adebayo shot 3 of 4 on midrange shots.
“Just because people got to guard me now,” Adebayo said of what effect that shot will have on the Heat and his overall game. “They can’t just sit under the basket or back up so Duncan [Robinson] and them can’t get open cuts. They have to guard me.”
Adebayo, who won the NBA’s Skills Challenge last season, also wants to expand his game to three-point range in the near future because “that’s part of the growth that I want to have.” He has shot 5 of 36 (13.9 percent) on threes in 223 regular-season games during his NBA career.
“We want him to put pressure on opposing defenses in every way possible,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “He’s just continuing to player develop to be able to add more skills and more tools that help our offense. His ability to pass, his ability to handle, get us into offense, to attack defenses, get to the free-throw line, get to the rim, to be a screener and one of the most dynamic rollers whether he’s catching it in the pocket or for lobs. Then since the ball is in his hands, his ability to make free throws and make some of these short-range shots that are not layups or not three-pointers. We don’t need him to be a stretch five, but to be able to make enough that it just varies your menu and puts a lot of pressure on the defense.”
Before the start of last season, he told those around him that he would average 16 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Not many people believed him.
Adebayo ended up hitting those numbers almost exactly, averaging 15.9 points, 10.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists.
Entering his fourth NBA season, the expectations surrounding Adebayo have never been higher. So, what numbers does Adebayo expect to average this season?
“I haven’t projected them yet. I’ll do it soon,” he said.
This time, though, more people will probably believe him.
NO FANS AT AAA THROUGH END OF 2020
The Heat will continue to play games at AmericanAirlines Arena without any fans in attendance through the end of 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
In an email sent to season-ticket holders on Tuesday, the Heat’s message was clear: No fans are expected back at its downtown Miami arena through the end of the calendar year. That means the Heat’s first three home games of the regular season — Dec. 25 vs. Pelicans, Dec. 29 vs. Milwaukee Bucks and Dec. 30 vs. Bucks — will be played without fans at AmericanAirlines Arena.
“The end of next week will mark the beginning of a new year,” the Heat wrote in an email to season-ticket holders. “Everyone in our organization welcomes the hope and optimism that in 2021, we will be together again, in a safe environment, watching Miami Heat basketball at the Heat’s house. Until that time comes, I will keep you informed as we prepare AmericanAirlines Arena for your safe and eventual return.”
Nothing official has been decided yet beyond the end of 2020. The Heat’s first home game in 2021 is Jan. 4 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
This story was originally published December 22, 2020 at 12:23 PM.
