Miami Heat All-Star center Bam Adebayo has had shooting struggles before, but he’s handling this one differently.
While Adebayo’s double-double stat line of 16 points and 16 rebounds in Sunday night’s 110-108 home loss to the Washington Wizards is impressive on the surface, his shooting struggles continued. He shot just 1 of 5 (20%) on non-rim paint shots and 2 of 6 (33.3%) from the foul line in the loss.
Heat’s ‘heartbreaking run’ hits another obstacle after ugly loss to Wizards: ‘This one is painful’
Over the last three games, Adebayo shot 13 of 37 (35.1%) from the field, 2 of 16 (12.5%) on unrimmed paint shots and 9 of 18 (50%) from the line free throws.
These marks are well below Adebayo’s season percentages of 50.8 percent shooting from the field, 49.1 percent shooting on non-rim paint shots and 76.1 percent shooting from the line mistakes.
But instead of shooting fewer shots like he might have done in a similar situation in the past, Adebayo is going to try to get through this drought by remaining aggressive.
“Keep shooting,” Adebayo said of how he plans to break out of his shooting slump ahead of Wednesday’s NBA Finals rematch against the Denver Nuggets at Kaseya Center. “That’s the easy way: keep shooting. Obviously, my teammates and the coaching staff give me confidence to keep shooting and be aggressive. In previous years, I would have gone into my shell and thought I was just going to play defense tonight. So for me it’s just taking a step in the right direction by staying aggressive.
This period of ineffectiveness, however, is unlike anything this experienced, All-Star version of Adebayo has ever faced. The last time he went through a three-game stretch shooting 35.1% or worse from the field and 50% or worse following a foul was 2018 during his second NBA season .
“I’m going to have some ups and downs over the course of a season,” Adebayo, 26, said. “That’s part of it. If you let it, it will break you. So for me, man, I’m still aggressive, I’m still taking the shots that I usually take, I’m still in the paint, I’m still aggressive.
Adebayo then reflected on the growth he’s made in the face of shooting struggles during his NBA career.
“It’s funny because years ago you all would have said, ‘Why don’t you just keep shooting?'” Adebayo said. “Now we are talking about my crisis. So it’s just about finding my rhythm. Get him back and I have a feeling we’ll be in good shape afterwards.
Adebayo, a three-time NBA All-Star, is still one of five players averaging at least 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists per game this season, along with Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Denver’s Nikola Jokic and Sacramento’s Domantas. Sabonis.
It’s no coincidence that Adebayo’s latest shooting slump came against three teams that made him a big part of their defensive game plans, sending double teams and clogging the paint against him and his Heat co-star Jimmy Butler.
“It’s just something we have to adapt to,” Adebayo said. “Get in the movie room, see how we can fix this and get more flow.” When you start to see that same type of defense, we start to get into a flow, you start to see jump passes, you start to see guys cutting off the door. Because when you get all that attention, obviously some guys are looking at the ball. For you, as an offensive player, you have to play.
THIS AND THAT
▪ Heat guard Patty Mills played in her second straight game Sunday after signing with the Heat for the remainder of the season last week.
Mills, a 35-year-old veteran, finished Sunday’s loss to the Wizards with seven points on 3-of-7 shooting from the field and 1-of-4 shooting from three in 14 minutes off the Heat’s bench.
“He’s not even the one impacting games in terms of scoring or anything like that,” Adebayo said Sunday when asked about Mills’ early impact. “He’s just a positive guy. He is positive in groups, he is positive on the sidelines. He’s still trying to get guys up to speed and he’s still learning our system. So he does it the right way. I feel like he came in with the right mentality.
▪ The Heat entered Monday with the 22nd-ranked offense and ninth-ranked defense in the NBA this season.
