Adebayo showing he can step into a few 3’s
Heat center Bam Adebayo’s performance in last month’s NBA All-Star Game was uneventful aside from a pull-up, above-thebreak three-pointer he hit five minutes into the first quarter for his only points of the night. But for a player who doesn’t take or make many threes in the real games, that one shot was enough to draw some attention.
“Tell Spo [Heat coach Erik Spoelstra],” Adebayo joked after making that three in the showcase game. “Pull the clip up, show Spo.”
That moment probably wasn’t the catalyst for Adebayo’s recent three-point uptick, but it provided a glimpse at a shot Adebayo has in his repertoire that he has turned to more frequently in the last month.
Adebayo averaged 0.2 three-point attempts per game before the All-Star break this season and is averaging 0.5 three-point attempts since then. End-of-quarter or end-of-shot clock situations have forced Adebayo to put up a few threes recently, but he’s also stepped into a few more within the flow of the offense.
While six of Adebayo’s 11 threepoint attempts before All-Star Weekend were forced because of late-clock situations, only two of his five three-point attempts since the break have come at the end of the shot clock or end of a quarter.
Adebayo stepped into a three within the flow of the offense and made it during Wednesday’s home loss to Denver. He did it again Friday in the Heat’s 108-95 win at Detroit, which ended a four-game skid and opened a four-game trip.
The three-pointer Friday marked just the second time that Adebayo made a three in two consecutive games during his NBA career. The other time was in January 2021.
“Might as well,” Adebayo said when asked about getting up more three-pointers recently after recording 22 points and nine rebounds Friday.
Not all three-pointers are created equal, but Spoelstra believes Adebayo is shooting the right ones.
His three-pointer Wednesday came with Nuggets center Nikola Jokic sagging way off of him. Adebayo took advantage to make the open, above-the-break three.
Then, on Friday, Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. flipped the ball