Bam Adebayo is receiving praise from one of the greatest in Miami Heat and NBA history.
On “The Big Podcast” with Shaquille O’Neal, Shaq called Bam a top 25 player in the league, but he didn’t stop there. The Hall of Famer who won a championship with the Heat in 2006 said he would also vote for Adebayo as Defensive Player of the Year.
Speaking with former Heat point guard Mario Chalmers, O’Neal explained what sets Adebayo apart from his peers.
“You want to impress me, keep Joker under 15 points,” O’Neal said. “Now you play. All these weaknesses, blocking shots is cool but it’s not going to work against guys like me, Joker and Embiid. What he talks about with Bam, Bam plays people, he plays two, three, four and five. So I would give [Defensive Player of the Year] for him too.
Chalmers agreed.
Shaq calls Rudy Gobert an overrated defender
“I never thought he was a great defensive player… See, what it is, there’s not a lot of centers that play him on defense. Like, he doesn’t do that shit against Joker… He’s 7’6”, of course, if you drop him he’ll… pic.twitter.com/prSRdD7Zqw
– NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) March 13, 2024
Interestingly, this episode was recorded before the Heat hosted the Nuggets on Wednesday night. In this loss, Adebayo limited Nikola Jokic (“Joker”) to less than 15 points, as O’Neal said. Jokic finished the game with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, 14 rebounds and six assists.
Is Adebayo in the top 25? It’s hard to disagree. Only four players are averaging nearly 20 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 actions (blocks plus steals) per game this season: Jokic, Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Adebayo. This is an elite company.
Adebayo has been a bit out of sorts during Miami’s four-game losing streak, but his nine-point outburst in the third quarter of Wednesday’s loss reminded him of what he can do on offense while defending the best league player. the other extremity.
Will Adebayo win Defensive Player of the Year? It’s doubtful. The award seems destined to go to Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert this season (who O’Neal called an overrated defender in this same podcast). Gobert is the anchor of the league’s best defense and is a deserving candidate.
And with Victor Wembanyama already becoming one of the fiercest rim protectors in the league, it might be difficult for Adebayo – or anyone else – to win the award for a while.
Even if Adebayo never wins Defensive Player of the Year, he at least has the respect of coaches who regularly choose him as an All-Star, opponents who show their admiration and football greats who sing his praises.
