Bam Adebayo's evolution as a shooter has become quite important - Hot Hot Hoops

Over his final 35 games, Miami Heat big Bam Adebayo shot 43.5 percent from 3-point range. (Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-Imagn Images)

Heading into the 2024-25 season, one of the biggest storylines was Bam Adebayo’s shooting — specifically his 3-point shooting. He began to show flashes in the latter stages of 2023-24, attempting 28 3-pointers over his final 17 games (after attempting just 14 in his first 54).

Many were expecting continued growth, though that’s not quite how last season began.

Adebayo struggled putting the ball in the cylinder for the first two months. He averaged just 16.2 points on 45.0/28.8/71.9 shooting splits over his first 30 games. And from the public sphere, you could tell he was (slightly) more hesitant to let the rock fly within the flow of the offense.

That didn’t last forever, though.

Once the calendar turned 2025, Adebayo looked closer to his normal self. He averaged 19.3 points over his final 48 games, including 21.0 points from March onward. However, his 3-point shooting efficiency took a sizable leap in the second half of the season.

And if the Heat are going to not only improve as an offense, but continue to deploy him alongside second-year big man Kel’el Ware, his growth as a shooter must continue to point upward.

Bam Adebayo must continue to grow as a 3-point shooter:

Two decades ago, big men who could space the floor were few are far between. While they were incredibly skilled in the mid-range and with their back to the basket, not every player was Dirk Nowitzki. The pace-and-space era — if that’s how you want to label it — emphasizes 3-point shooting from every player on the floor.

Not every player can do that, though. But the ability for a team to spread the floor as much as possible has never been more important. For Adebayo — like it (still) is for most bigs — expanding his range wasn’t a part of his game before last season, let alone when he entered the NBA in 2017.

In his first seven seasons, the three-time All-Star hoisted 104 combined triples, maxing out at 42 in 2023-24. He more than doubled that volume last season alone, attempting 221 threes — converting them at a 35.7 percent clip.

(Video Courtesy of NBA.com)

However, post-Jan. 1, Adebayo shot 39.7 percent from 3-point range on 2.9 attempts per game, including 43.5 percent over his final 35 games (dating back to Jan. 27). Of the 228 players who attempted at least 100 3-pointers post-Jan. 1, his 3-point percentage ranked in the 56th percentile. That’s nothing crazy. But among all centers, it placed in the 81st percentile.

Bam Adebayo’s balance and upper-body mechanics on his stand-still 3-point attempts has never been poor; in fact, you could argue it’s among the best on the team. It was always about being comfortable enough to shoot them in rhythm.

I think he’s gotten to that stage — at least more than he’s ever shown. And as he continues to grow as a shooter, he’ll force more difficult closeouts and, thus, will have more open lanes to get to the rim — an area where he’s struggled.

We know he’s capable of putting players through the rim, but his rim rate has declined each of the last four years, which is quite concerning. In the long haul, his 3-point shooting could help that out — provided there’s nobody else stitched in the paint.

With Duncan Robinson’s departure and Alec Burks’ unknown future in free agency, the Heat lost roughly 25 percent of their 3-point shooting from a year ago. That will be supplemented by Norman Powell — one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA — plus Simone Fontecchio and Kasparas Jakucionis. But for the Heat to maximize their young core, quality spacing is paramount.

And Adebayo’s shooting is an intriguing place to look for additional growth heading into the 2025-26 campaign.

Bam Adebayo’s evolution as a shooter has become quite important – Hot Hot Hoops

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