Bam Adebayo propels the Miami Heat in 200th career game

Playing in his 200th career game, Bam Adebayo and the Miami Heat put an exclamation point on their season series with the Philadelphia 76ers.

Bam Adebayo could hardly have written a better script for his 200th career appearance with the Miami Heat.

Determined to put on a solid showing against starting Eastern Conference center Joel Embiid, Adebayo’s full array of skills were on full display in the Heat’s 137-106 evisceration of the Philadelphia 76ers. Playing 36 minutes, Adebayo was simply dominant with 18 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists, once again enforcing why he was recently selected for his debut All-Star appearance.

In posting these numbers without committing a turnover, Adebayo became just the second player in NBA history aged 22 or younger to record this line, per Basketball Reference. The other was one of his opponents for the night, Ben Simmons.

In addition to his impressive counting stats, Adebayo’s peripheral numbers were equally as impressive. In addition to a game-high eight box-outs and three deflections, Adebayo also recorded a phenomenal 28 screen assist points.

In addition to these screen assists, Adebayo’s 11 regular assists contributed to a further 27 points, thus illustrating just how busy the former Kentucky star was for the night.

https://twitter.com/MiamiHEAT/status/1224500285051166730?s=20

Following the game, head coach Erik Spoelstra was asked about the playmaking abilities that Adebayo brings to the floor:

"“You have to  have the unselfishness to be able to want to set up your teammates all the time like that, and then the development of his skill level has improved so dramatically that he can get to different spots. He has a variety of different ways to help his teammates get open shots – guys can cut, he get those open passes now, he can dribble handoff to people, and just play out of the elbow or the low post and let actions develop and make easy passes to guys.”"

Now averaging a career-high 4.9 assists per game, Adebayo has already recorded at least six assists on 17 occasions this season, with the Heat posting a 13-4 record during these games.

When asked after the game what his mindset was heading into the contest, Adebayo responded:

"“Attacking the rim, just shooting when I was open, that was one thing my teammates have been emphasising, that I’ve gotta be aggressive.”"

Adebayo’s progression from reserve to starter and now All-Star has been swift and remarkable. And through 200 games, few have posted the numbers that he has already managed to produce.

Thus far, Adebayo has career totals of 1978 points, 1488 rebounds, 523 assists, 162 steals and 163 blocks. When you add that he has also shot at a 56.1 percent clip from the field for his career, just one player in NBA history has replicated these feats, per Basketball Reference:

• Charles Barkley

This win over the Sixers was vital, in that not only did it give the Heat a 3-1 season series edge over their rivals, but also that they are about to undertake a gruelling five-game, West Coast road trip. With starting center Meyers Leonard succumbing to an ankle sprain in the midst of this past win, it’s very possible that more responsibility is going to rest on the broad shoulders of Adebayo.

However given the incredible strides this season as a full-time starter, the Miami Heat are in good hands with Bam Adebayo leading from the front.