MIAMI – While the Miami Heat beat the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night, 112-86, one player would have their own revenge game and it wasn’t Jimmy Butler. With Heat stars Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro facing Butler in his return, both had productive performances with more so the team’s captain having a standout showcase.
Bam Adebayo’s energy was “contagious” for the Heat against Jimmy Butler
If there was one thing for certain right from the jump, Adebayo was a man on a mission as he set the tone for the rest of the game on both sides of the ball. He would start the game defending Butler and barely gave him any good look at the basket as the former Miami star had two points in the first half and 11 in the whole game.
Adebayo was showing his defensive prowess, providing a different energy that ended up becoming a domino effect for the rest of the team. With Adebayo starting on Butler defensively could be seen as intentional, Spoelstra would say to ClutchPoints that it has been the norm for the big man to guard the opposing team’s best wing player, but still acknowledged the “inspiring plays” he made that were “contagious.”
“That’s not even something that we just did for this game,” Spoelstra said. “Like, look at the last six weeks. We’re starting Kel’el, he goes to center, Bam guards whoever the best big wing is. So he’s, he’s taken on this challenge. It’s a new development and chapter in his defensive prowess.
“But it’s the commitment to do a lot of tough things,” Spoelstra continued. “He made some inspiring plays right out of the gate, and that just kind of like, energized everybody else and inspired the next guy to make a play. Then Kel’el started making plays. Then you bring in, you know, Davion [Mitchell] and H [Haywood Highsmith] and they’re flying around playing heart attack. It becomes contagious.”
Heat’s Bam Adebayo on the “outside emotion” of Jimmy Butler’s return
As the Heat’s captain, Adebayo had a big task coming into this game as it was far beyond facing a former teammate in Butler. It’s more so channeling the emotions of not only himself but of the rest of the team due to the highly-anticipated matchup against the Warriors.
Adebayo had the exact performance any payer would want out of a leader as he finished with 27 points on nine for 18 shooting from the field to go along with eight rebounds. He would even say after the game that there was “a lot of outside emotion” in regards to the game, though made sure to acknowledge that it wasn’t coming from the locker room.
“Yeah, you know. There was a lot of outside emotion around this game,” Adebayo said. “I’m not going to say for us, because, you know, like I said before, we’re scrapping for wins, but it was a lot of outside emotion around it, and to go out there and have that type of performance. It’s just, you give guys a vision, you give guys belief. You know you want guys to play to a higher level, and they did tonight.”
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Heat’s Bam Adebayo on guarding Jimmy Butler primarily
The Heat would end up making a tribute video to Butler, commemorating the last five and a half years filled with iconic moments such as leading the team to two NBA Finals appearances. Still, there was no doubt that the breakup between the two parties was a messy one, but it doesn’t mean there isn’t admiration on both sides.
While people will focus on Butler going straight to the locker room when the game ended or Tyler Herro after the game saying to ClutchPoints that he didn’t have a conversation with him before or after the outing, Adebayo would touch on their relationship. Besides speaking on being able to guard wing players, he said that Butler has “been through the trenches with us” and that “it’s the utmost respect to him.”
“I think it’s a part of my versatility,” Adebayo said. “I feel like that just adds value to me. Obviously, been doing quite some time with switching, but to start on primary wings is different. But like I said man, the guy’s been through the trenches with us, so it’s the utmost respect to him. I’m just glad we got the win.”
While the Butler return was the focus, it was also a reunion for Andrew Wiggins who faced his former team as Adebayo’s performance was worth noting.
“For sure, going out there, he set the tone early, with his physicality on both sides of the floor,” Wiggins said.
At any rate, Miami is now 31-41 which puts them 10th in the Eastern Conference as the team looks for three straight wins on Thursday against the Atlanta Hawks.
