Miami Heat: Bam Adebayo responds to the challenge

Following the third consecutive loss for the Miami Heat, Jimmy Butler simply needed to vent. Having succumbed to the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves 119-111, Butler expressed his sheer frustration at what the Heat were serving up:

"“Home, away, no matter what opponent you’re playing against, you just stroll into the game thinking you’re nice, you’re good, this is what happens. I’m glad it happened to us. And if we don’t fix it, I hope it continues to happen to us. We’re just being soft. That’s it. Not getting into bodies, scared of some contact. Soft overall.”"

He then specifically mentioned Adebayo in his line of criticism:

"“I want Bam to attack the rim because nobody can stay in front of him. Nobody can stay in front of him. Go. You’re going to get fouled or you’re going to dunk on somebody. That’s cool. I love him shooting midrange jump shots too, but he lets people off the hook. Play bully ball. I like bully ball.”"

But with Butler missing the ensuing game against the Brooklyn Nets, this put even more focus and attention towards the performance of Adebayo. And while his seven turnovers were far from ideal, his final line of 21 points, 15 rebounds, five assists and two steals was both impressive and thoroughly needed. Most importantly, as can be seen from the vision above, Adebayo sealed the win with the first buzzer-beating game-winner of his career, by superbly running down the clock to ultimately hit the short pull-up jumper.

Having been publicly called out for his recent performances, Bam Adebayo responded in emphatic fashion for the Miami Heat.

Having taken just six and eight field goal attempts in two of his three previous outings, Adebayo’s 16 field attempts and team-high 32.1 percent usage rate were very encouraging returns. And as much as his aggressiveness offensively was cause for optimism, Adebayo’s return at the defensive end of the floor was just sublime.

In addition to holding the Nets to 3-of-17 shooting from the field as their primary defender, Adebayo held All-Star Kyrie Irving to 0-of-8 shooting, with virtually all of these possessions coming in isolation situations.

The fact that Adebayo was able to exert himself at such an elite level on both ends of the floor against one of the premier teams was not lost on Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra after the game:

"“Bam was really good defensively down the stretch. I know we’ll all talk about his game winner, but defensively he made some things happen, and when in doubt he would get up in a crowd and get the rebound.”"

Looking ahead, the Heat have little time to reflect on a victory that broke a three-game losing streak, playing host to the Houston Rockets on the second night of a back-to-back. At this stage, Butler remains questionable to return to the lineup, as does the newly-acquired Victor Oladipo, sidelined for the past five games with a knee issue.

But given the all-out intensity he displayed at both ends of the floor in the victory over the Brooklyn Nets, the Miami Heat can be confident that Bam Adebayo can hold down the fort until the reinforcements arrive.