When Bam Adebayo returned from his seven-week absence due to thumb surgery, some questioned his conservativeness on offense. At times, it would appear as if he prioritized passing over shooting the ball himself. In the month of January, Bam averaged 15.1 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 11.4 FGA per game. He shot just 49.5% from the field, compared to his season average of 52.3%. On the flip side, he also averaged 4.6 assists, his highest in any month this season. Despite the slow start, Bam has ramped up his aggressiveness in the past few weeks.
This month, Bam has shown how effective he can be as the primary scoring option. In the last five games, he’s averaging 24 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 16.6 FGA per game. He’s taking the most shots out of any other Heat player in this stretch and converting them at a 56.6% rate. While Bam has shown flashes of this aggressive mindset before (his 41 point game against Brooklyn last season comes to mind), he hasn’t produced these types of numbers on a consistent basis before.
The most recent game against the Pelicans was the perfect example of how effective this version of Bam can be. He dominated early on, leading the Heat with 17 points at halftime. Bam went deep into his offensive bag for this game, hitting mid-range shots, hooks, and putbacks at an efficient rate. Between Lowry’s triple double and Jimmy adding another 29 points, this was one of the best performances of the season for the Heat’s Big 3.
He ended the game with 29 points, 10 rebounds, 3 steals, and hit 75% of his 21 shot attempts. It’s clear that Bam plays at his best when he has a score-first mentality. If he can stay this consistent offensively, he has the potential to be one of the best two-way players in the league.
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