‘Where the hell is Bam Adebayo?’ Here’s where, and the expectation that must change

It’s like clockwork; Bam Adebayo gets criticized on a national platform. And then he answers, fervently and ferociously.

Roasted on ESPN for his 10- and 6-point performances in the first two games of the Eastern Conference finals last May, Adebayo then delivered a 31-point, 10-rebound gem in a Game 3 win in Boston.

And no sooner than ESPN — primarily Kendrick Perkins — ripped Adebayo last week than Adebayo responded with perhaps his two best games of the season: 24 points and 15 rebounds against Charlotte and 30 points and 10 rebounds against Phoenix on Monday before missing Wednesday’s game at Toronto because of a left knee contusion.

The Bam-bashing last week very much mirrored the criticism he has frequently drawn the past year and a half when the offensive aggressiveness (or efficiency) is viewed as lacking.

“Where the hell is Bam Adebayo?” Perkins, the longtime former NBA center, ranted last Friday on ESPN.

“Just three years ago, [we were talking about him] with some of the elite bigs, power forwards in the game today,” Perkins said. “I’m trying to figure out where does Bam stand. I kind of see him playing the same role as a Clint Capela as far as his impact on the game.”

That was a reference to Atlanta’s center, who focuses on rebounding and defense.

“If the Heat is trying to win the championship, he’s going to have to elevate his game even more,” Perkins said of Adebayo. “I’m talking about a 25-, 26- point scorer a night, 14 rebounds, 3 blocks. That’s the Bam we’ve all been waiting on, and I’m not sure he’s capable of being that guy.”

ESPN analyst and former NBA wing Matt Barnes chimed in: “I agree, Perk. It’s time for Bam to step into that role because I think he definitely is capable of stepping in that role. I feel the Heat isn’t at their best when Jimmy Butler has to be the guy that saves them every night offensively.

“I feel Jimmy is at his best when he can be a Swiss Army knife across the board and he can throw in 30 as a bonus. When he’s consistently having to be that leading scorer that’s what this team is lacking.”

But that’s the way this team is built, with Butler leading the group in scoring. That approach took the Heat within one game of an NBA Finals last season.

Here’s a thought: Now that he’s in his sixth season and passed the 250-start threshold, it’s time to move past the expectation of Adebayo becoming a 26-point, 15-rebound guy.

Will he occasionally deliver big scoring nights like that? Of course.

Will that fuel the expectation that he should do it more? Of course.

But that’s not, fundamentally, who is. He’s not Joel Embiid.

And that’s fine.

What he is is good enough — an elite defender with more switchability than any center in basketball, an elite screener, a very good rebounder, a vastly improved midrange shooter, a high-IQ player and a selfless teammate.

That’s more than the Heat could have reasonably expected when it drafted him 14th in 2017.

At some point, that’s going to need to be enough.

And if the Heat wants to be considered an elite team again, the solution likely will need to come from outside, with another established scorer (and preferably some size) added to the mix via a trade.

Adebayo’s nickname “No Ceiling” — and the fact he has significantly improved his midrange jumper during the past two years — has created this perception for some that he can be, or should be, a 25-point a game player.

The scoring — during the past two-plus seasons — has been virtually the same: 18.7 points in 2020-21, 19.1 last season and 19.1 in 14 games this season. He’s attempting 14 shots a game, up one from a year ago.

Perhaps the three-point game that he worked on all summer begins to become a factor, but it hasn’t yet. He’s 0 for 5 on threes this season and 7 for 55 in his career.

His rebounding consistently falls in the same range, with 10.2, 9.0, 10.1 and now 9.1 averages during the past four years.

In his three-plus seasons as a starter, do you know how often Adebayo has scored 25 or more points in consecutive games? Three times. And he has never done it three games in a row.

And that’s fine.

Let’s be clear: Players do increase their scoring averages six years into a career. Perennial MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo has done it every year, at least incrementally, except one. But he already was averaging 27 per game by Year 5 and nearly 28 by Year 6.

If you’re hoping, like Perkins, that Adebayo can become the every-night, 26-point a game guy that would help draw the Heat closer to Boston and Milwaukee, that doesn’t seem like a reasonable expectation.

It’s not out of the question — after all, he entered the week fourth in the league in fourth-quarter scoring — but I’m not sure why anybody would be expecting this, either.

He still does plenty without that, including masking defensive weaknesses in a lineup that features a 6-5 power forward and is among the most undersized in basketball.

“Look,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said this week. “I’ve never coached really somebody where there’s been so many different responsibilities and then so many opinions about what he needs to do. And basically it’s all about the final line in the box score [points].

“That doesn’t tell the true tale of how he’s able to impact. But that assertiveness and aggressiveness to the rim, he’s a rugged player at his finest, like Jimmy. They’re really so similar, just at different positions. And when he’s able to make those kinds of aggressive plays in the paint, at the rim, get to the free-throw line, that sets up some other things for him.

“He’s really improved his pull-up jumper, even in the paint. That’s a go-to shot for him. But he still creates so many opportunities for other guys, as well. He’s such a willing, serving player. And that’s why everybody respects him so much in that locker room.”

So if he gives you 25 to 30 points every few games? Great.

But the rest of his career here needs to be about appreciating what he is, not lamenting what he’s not.

THIS AND THAT

▪ During that same discussion late last week, ESPN’s Zach Lowe said of the Heat: “Their offense has felt like: please save us Jimmy Butler as a screener, ball handler, as a post-up guy. He’s doing everything….

“Kyle Lowry hasn’t had a lot of juice this year. Without P.J. Tucker, they feel really, really small. When Bam switches out on defense to the perimeter, the rim is completely vulnerable. They don’t have any size behind him.”

▪ With Tyler Herro still out with an ankle injury and Max Strus starting in his place, the question already has been asked: Is the Heat starting lineup better with Herro or Strus in it?

Miami had outscored teams by nine points in 88 minutes and shot 44.4 percent from the field with Herro playing alongside Butler, Adebayo, Lowry and Martin.

But with Strus in that group instead of Herro, Miami is a plus-43 in 73 minutes and shooting 53.9 percent from the field.

▪ SYNtv’s Ian Begley reported that the Suns have interest in Strus in a Jae Crowder trade scenario. But that seemingly would be a non-starter with Miami. Strus is an impending free agent and the Heat holds his Bird rights.

Even beyond the Heat not wanting to give up Strus for Crowder and his expiring contract, keep in mind any such deal likely would need Duncan Robinson’s contract as a salary cap facilitator — at least until Jan. 15, when Dewayne Dedmon and Victor Oladipo can be traded.

If the Heat dealt Strus, it wouldn’t be in any position to trade Robinson because that would leave Miami without enough shooting and floor spacers.

Crowder, who helped the Heat’s run to the NBA Finals in the Disney bubble in 2020, requested a trade from the Suns before training camp and hasn’t been with the team this season. The Heat is among teams that interest him, and the Miami and Phoenix front offices have talked.

NBA reporter Marc Stein tweeted Wednesday that “there have been some credible rumbles this week that the Suns have made progress on finding a trade resolution to the Jae Crowder saga.”