MIAMI – As the Miami Heat beat the Toronto Raptors in their last NBA Cup group play game, 121-111, it was in part to an impeccable performance from their star center. Heat captain Bam Adebayo would record his eighth career triple-double Friday night as the last rebound he needed came from the help of teammate Jimmy Butler.
With around eight seconds left, Butler threw up a shot when the game was already over, seemingly for the intention of Adebayo getting his 10th rebound. After the game, Butler seemed to sarcastically say that he didn’t know Adebayo needed one more board, but the big man had a humorous reaction when talking about Butler’s shot attempt.
“That’s my guy! That’s what you’re supposed to as teammates, look out for each other,” Adebayo said.
Adebayo would finish with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in getting the triple-double, which the eighth marks the third most in franchise history. It was another great performance also from the Heat star in Butler as he led the team with 26 points to go along with six assists and two rebounds.
He would talk about Adebayo’s play-making after the game, saying that he admires the way he gets his teammates in position to make easy baskets.
“I like the fact that he’s getting everybody the ball in the position of where they can score,” Butler said. “But more than anything, actually scoring the ball at an incredible high clip. But I don’t think that’s our problem. We gotta guard somebody on the other end, and as long as he keeps attacking and keeping everybody else involved, he’s going to get 10 assists.”
Heat’s Erik Spoelstra speaks on the play-making ability of Bam Adebayo
Talking about Adebayo, his play-making ability is not new for anyone who has been watching his game develop over the years. Friday put that on display as his versatility “puts pressure on the defense,” according to Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, who sang his center’s praises after the contest.
“I mean, it’s not necessarily a new role,” Adebayo said. “It’s just, you know, we’re subtly shifting things. And there’s layers to that. And, you know, Bam, one of his initial gifts when he started to take on more offense responsibilities years ago was his playmaking, his ability to do triple handoffs, his ability to pass at the elbow or the top of the floor. We want to take advantage of that as much as possible, and then the balance is, we want him to be aggressive.”
“And want him to be able to put pressure on the defense, at the rim, you know, in the dotted circle, all those different areas,” Spoelstra continued. “You know, he’s managing that extremely well, that probably puts a lot of stress on teams that are scouting against us when Bam gets double-digit assists, there’s a lot of different things that can happen or go wrong for your defense when he’s a playmaking mode on that so it’ll be the balance of doing that and also keeping him aggressive.”
Heat’s Bam Adebayo speaks on putting teammates in position to score
Adebayo is seen as the cornerstone of the Heat, and his usage on the court shows that wholeheartedly, as besides being one of the main drives on offense, he’s the anchor of the defense. When speaking about his role after the game, he said that he adores having the role of making it “easy” for his teammates to score.
“It’s what it’s all about, being able to make it easy for your teammates to get buckets. It’s one of those things where you see a guy like Duncan [Robinson], Tyler [Herro], and you know Jimmy [Butler] when he runs in transition, you know, get him easy looks. You’re dealing with me passing, and all of a sudden, that fire hits with me. Now you’re dealing with a whole different compartment of problems.”
At any rate, the Heat are now 9-8 as they are on a two-game winning streak, looking to make it three as they once again take on the Raptors on Sunday evening.
