The Miami Heat thought they were putting together a championship contender when they traded for Giannis Antetokounmpo over the summer.
They’re currently just hoping they can figure out how to win a basketball game.
The Heat have fallen to 0-4 with a 113-109 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night.
Giannis wasn’t the problem. He went for 29 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists.
The Heat also got another big scoring day from Davion Mitchell, who finished with 21 points.
The problem, it turns out, is Bam Adebayo.
The Heat’s standard-bearer, a guy who scored 83 points in a game last season, has been putrid so far this season.
It’s fair to wonder if the Antetokounmpo trade has changed the calculus in a negative fashion for Adebayo.
Bam Adebayo Reality Check
The biggest concern for the Heat when they acquired Antetokounmpo is what it would do for their floor spacing.
To have Giannis and Bam as your two best players is to have two guys who aren’t great outside shooters trying to lead the offense in an era where pace-and-space often rules the day.
The Heat needed to do everything possible to surround these stars with shooting, and it’s not clear if they’ve done that so far.
That has limited Adebayo. He’s playing much below his usual level. He clearly hasn’t figured out how to operate in the same lineups with Antetokounmpo.
It’s a long season, but the Heat will need this to turn around at some point.
Bam Adebayo Stats
Adebayo had a rough night against the Mavs on Monday. He scored eight points in 30 minutes, making just 3-of-10 field goal attempts. He attempted five 3-pointers and missed them all.
He was mostly bumpy the first three games of the season before this, too.
In the opener, Adebayo scored 15 points, making half of his shot attempts, with seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. That was solid.
In game two, he made just a third of his shots for four points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Adebayo scored 20 points his last time out with eight rebounds and four assists, although he was inefficient from the floor.
And now he was back in single-digit scoring on Monday.
His season stats aren’t ideal:
Bam Adebayo this season:
11.8 PPG
7.3 RPG
40.0% FG
16.7% 3PT
61.5% FTCmon man… https://t.co/rqdfKZOb6v
— Polymarket Hoops (@PolymarketHoops) October 27, 2026
The Heat have a lot to figure out right now. An 0-4 start puts a lot into question.
There’s plenty at fault so far, but it’s clear that Adebayo needs to be better.
Heat Dealt Brutal Bam Adebayo Reality Check