Inside The Heat

Bam Adebayo Lives Up To Nickname Given By LeBron James In Latest Shooting Performance

Shandel Richardson

Jul 31, 2024; Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France; United States center Bam Adebayo (13) dribbles in the third quarter against South Sudan during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Stade Pierre-Mauroy. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 31, 2024; Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France; United States center Bam Adebayo (13) dribbles in the third quarter against South Sudan during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Stade Pierre-Mauroy. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports / John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
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Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo has been unable to get away from folks trying to change his nickname this summer.

First, it was Bamonte because JaVale McGee thought it was real first name during the 2020 Olympics. Most recently, it was LeBron James trying to give Adebayo another moniker.

Two weeks ago, James put Adebayo in the same category as Steph Curry and Klay Thompson following a Team USA exhibition win in Las Vegas.

"The new Splash Brother," James said at the time. "Bam Bam Splash right there."

On Wednesday, Adebayo lived up to it by making 2 of 3 from the 3-point line in the victory against South Sudan.

Splash Brothers Curry and Thompson were once the NBA's most feared shooting duo when they teamed with the Golden State Warriors. With Thompson now with the Dallas Mavericks, Curry perhaps has a summer replacement in Adebayo.

It seems Adebayo, who finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and two blocks, makes new strides from the arc every season. This may be finally the time for the Heat to unleash him from the perimeter. There are already talks of moving Adebayo to power forward after Indiana center Kel'el Ware was drafted in the first round.

Others are starting to grow more comfortable with Adebayo shooting from the 3-point line. That was evident when Curry hit Adebayo for a spot-up shot from the corner against South Sudan.

Adebayo has gone by the nickname Bam for most of his life but maybe it's time for a change?

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com

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Shandel Richardson

SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com You can subscribe to our YouTube channel here Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook here