On the night of December 28th, with 30 seconds to play in overtime and the Heat tied with the Sixers 114-114, Bam Adebayo took a major step in his development. Joel Embiid had dominated the game, finishing with 35 points and 11 boards, and it had not been one of Adebayo's better showings for much of the night. But it had come down to this, Adebayo vs. Embiid, the shot clock ticking down, the game on the line.
Plenty of young players, particularly those still early in the process of offensive development, would've shied away from a defender of Embiid's caliber, if not a moment like this altogether. But Adebayo, in the words of Meyers Leonard, is "different." He squared up Embiid, and did this:
After the game, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra called this "one of the toughest baskets Bam has scored in his career," and when Bam was asked whether he would've had the confidence to make that kind of play, in that situation, against that kind of a defender, in earlier stages of his career, he was unequivocal.
"No. Hundred percent no," he said. "I feel like I wouldn't have been brave enough to do that in such a crunch-time moment. So just really developing my skillset, and just really honing in [on my development], that's why I made the play."
Adebayo is one of the league's fastest-rising stars, his ascension so steep that Heat President Pat Riley -- Pat Riley! -- is on record basically calling him the future face of the franchise.
"He's the Zo [Alonzo Mourning]. He's the UD [Udonis Haslem]. He's the Dwyane [Wade]. They were standard-bearers. Bam is that person. He is the real deal," Riley told ESPN's Zach Lowe last December.
A few weeks back, our CBS Sports staff started talking about all the young, emerging stars in the league with an idea for a series on what each of them needs to improve. I recently profiled Trae Young's off-ball movement, or lack thereof. I could've easily put a spotlight on Young's defense, as well. He's an emerging superstar, no doubt, but there are still clear holes in his game.
With Adebayo, it's different. We're going to talk about his shooting, but even that is on the fast track to not just improving, but becoming a relative weapon in his rapidly expanding arsenal on both ends of the floor.
"There aren't too many players like that guy over there," Meyers Leonard told CBS Sports the night of that Philly game, nodding in the direction of Adebayo. "He can guard one through five. There aren't many players you can really say that about. ... And now you're seeing what he can do offensively, with the playmaking, his length, his IQ, and he wants to get better. That's demanded around here. It doesn't matter if you're a lottery pick or Jimmy Butler or whatever.
"We have weight and body-fat [testing] once a week," Leonard continued. "That's not normal [in the NBA]. But that's a standard in this locker room. You either fall in line with this culture of pushing for more, working your a-- off, being accountable, being in shape, defending, or you're not going to make it here. This is my first year here, but you hear the way the people around here talk about [Bam]. He's been that guy from day one, where you just look at him and the way he works, the way he competes, and he's just a Miami Heat player. So now you combine that kind of approach, mentally, with his physical gifts? Man, he can be special."
Adebayo's defensive prowess is indeed special. As Leonard said, he can guard one through five, and no, there aren't many players who can legitimately say that. A lot of guys can guard three positions. Some can guard four. The guys who can guard five -- like Ben Simmons, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Marcus Smart, perhaps Anthony Davis, LeBron James in a pinch -- these are unicorns. Bam is a defensive unicorn.
He's also quickly becoming point-forward versatile on the offensive end, a hub of Miami's offense entrusted to push the ball on the break and initiate half-court offense. He's a gifted and anticipatory passer -- second in the league in assist percentage among centers, per NBA.com, trailing only Nikola Jokic, who is perhaps the greatest passing big man in history.
His turnovers, on paper, look like a problem, but understand that his usage rate has gone up by more than 33 percent from last season. He's being asked to do more than he's ever done offensively, at any level. You have the ball more often, you're naturally going to cough it up more often. Also, his confidence is growing as a playmaker, which in turn leads to a few more, shall we say, adventurous forays. He'll figure out the right balance. Natural, organic growth in this department can be expected.
It's the shooting that needs to come from hours in the gym, and Adebayo's work ethic is already celebrated even in a Miami Heat organization that prides itself on an almost militaristic collective worth ethic. Between Adebayo's rookie and second season, I ran into Spoelstra at summer league and he laughed that they "couldn't keep [Adebayo] out of the gym."
The work is paying off. As evidenced by the drive and finish against Embiid, Adebayo's at-rim efficiency has improved every year in the league; this season he ranks in the 70th percentile among players at his position, finishing shots inside the restricted area at a 72-percent clip, per Cleaning the Glass. He's also gone from 37.7 percent in the short mid-range last season to 46 percent this season in the 10-14 foot range, per NBA.com. This is where the growth has been most evident. Before this season came to a halt, you could see Adebayo becoming more comfortable with expanding his range almost by the week.
Again, that short jumper in the paint, or in that 10-14 foot range, is starting to become an actual sweet spot for Adebayo. His arc is almost tear-droppy on this shot. His touch is soft. It's the second jumper in that clip that is a much rarer sighting, that 17-foot mid-ranger defenses will be more than willing to give him.
Adebayo does a good job of making teams pay when they give him that space, moving right into a dribble handoff or dribbling in for a shorter jumper, but if he can add just a bit of range to jumper for pick-and-pop situations, he is going to be an even bigger problem.
There is even reason to believe Adebayo can eventually become a 3-point threat. From Lowe's aforementioned ESPN piece:
One Heat official asked Adebayo what percentage of corner 3s he could hit in practice. Adebayo answered with bravado: 60 percent. Prove it, they said. Adebayo hit 31-of-50 -- 62 percent.
Spoelstra believes Adebayo's smooth form and release, combined with growing confidence, make for a "natural progression" into eventually taking and making 3-pointers, which would potentially make him a fringe MVP candidate in years to come if Miami is to stay on a legit-contender timeline.
Again, shooting with mid-to-3-point range is really the only hole in his game at the moment. It's not to suggest he can't improve in just about any area. He can. And he will. He's 22 years old. He's not even through his third NBA season. But building on your strengths is different than eliminating a weakness.
Bam only has one true weakness in his game. And all indications are that it won't be there for long. When our staff convened for that conversation about young players and what they need to improve, I suggested that perhaps the Bam hype was getting a bit out of control, that he was starting to feel like one of those players who'd been so easily saddled with the underrated tag that he had, in fact, become overrated.
I went back and watched the film. I am dumb. This guy is already so good, and it's so obvious how easily the game comes to him. He feels it. Just the way he moves reminds you of that guy on the playground who the second you show up you just know he can play. Bam is a ballplayer. When and if he becomes a "shooter," he's going to be terrifying.
