On Friday, Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra talked to the media and hinted that he’s all for star big man Bam Adebayo letting it fly from deep more often than he did in his first seven seasons in the league.
Adebayo said that Spoelstra came to the realization that the 27-year-old is a capable 3-point shooter during the 2024 Paris Olympics. The former University of Kentucky star was one of 12 players on Team USA’s roster, and Spoelstra served as an assistant coach with the squad.
“Sometimes I think seein’ is believing,” Adebayo said regarding Spoelstra’s realization. “And I think Spo seeing me — well being my development coach in the Olympics was kinda like, ‘Man, you can shoot 3s.’ Yeah, it kinda clicked a little bit, you know?”
The frequency with which Adebayo shot the ball from behind the 3-point arc in Miami’s preseason opener against the Charlotte Hornets suggests that he’s serious about being a dependable floor spacer for the Heat.
Adebayo played a mere 17 minutes in the contest, yet he attempted five 3s during his time on the floor. More than half of his shots from the floor came from deep, as he finished the game with nine field-goal attempts.
Not only did Adebayo take a whole lot of 3s, but he knocked down multiple shots from that range. Two of Adebayo’s five looks found the bottom of the net, equating to a 40.0 percent clip.
For reference, Adebayo has never made more than two 3s in a regular-season game since he was drafted by the Heat with the final lottery pick of the 2017 NBA Draft.
The big man also averaged just 0.6 3-point attempts per contest across 71 games played with Miami in the 2023-24 regular season. That marked a career-high for Adebayo, believe it or not.
Heat fans should tune into Miami’s preseason game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, if for no other reason than to find out how many 3s Adebayo will take and make.
If Adebayo can establish himself as one of Miami’s better 3-point threats in the 2024-25 campaign, folks will be hard-pressed to find many flaws in his offensive arsenal. After all, he is already great at scoring inside the arc and is a productive playmaker as well.