In what likely won’t come as a surprise to Miami Heat fans, the team is apparently making All-Star big man Bam Adebayo untouchable in trade talks, according to Ethan Skolnick of Five Reasons Sports Network.
Adebayo has taken a huge leap on offense this season and been way more aggressive than he was in previous seasons. That increased level of aggressiveness has led to him averaging 21.5 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game this season while knocking down 54.1 percent of his shots from the field.
The University of Kentucky product’s defense has been among the best in the league for multiple seasons now, but it seemed like his offensive game was lagging behind just a small amount at times.
However, he’s seemingly quelled any concerns about that part of his game by becoming the team’s second-leading scorer this season. He’s just 0.4 points per game behind Jimmy Butler.
The 25-year-old seems like he’s on his way to becoming a No. 1 option on offense for the Heat, something that would really help the team out come playoff time.
Miami is currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference with a 29-25 record. The team has been wildly inconsistent all season long and is riding a two-game losing streak. The good news, though, is that it has two very winnable games at home coming up against the Indiana Pacers and Houston Rockets.
Checking in on the progress of Bam’s stated goal
Before the regular season began, Adebayo revealed that he wanted to take 18 shots per game this season. He said during the team’s media day that the Heat are “a lot better” when he’s scoring the ball.
The center should get some credit even though he’s currently short of his goal. Adebayo is putting up 15.9 shots per night. That’s around three more than he took per game last season.
It’s truly special to see Adebayo improve his game year in and year out. With this type of trajectory, it wouldn’t be surprising to see people consistently label him as a top 15 player in the league.
The Heat are undoubtedly happy that they have Adebayo locked up for the foreseeable future. Only time will tell what type of player he turns into down the road.
