MIAMI — A day after Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo cashed in on his defensive prowess by being named first-team NBA All-Defensive for the first time in his career, two-way recognition was put on hold.
Not only will a first All-NBA selection have to wait at least another season, but by failing to be announced Wednesday as one of the 15 players named to the three 2024 All-NBA teams, Adebayo saw his chances evaporate for a supermax contract extension.
With an All-NBA selection, Adebayo would have been eligible for a four-year, $245 million extension in July. Instead, his eligibility now is limited to a three-year $165 million extension.
For the Heat, amid the team’s luxury-tax and salary-cap concerns, a max extension for Adebayo would have begun with a $51.2 million salary for 2026-27. For now, he remains with a $39.1 million cap hold in place for that offseason.
Financials aside, Adebayo viewed Wednesday’s announcement as the opportunity to have his two-way skills validated.
Pigeonholed to this stage of his career as a defensive specialist, Adebayo said the hope is he eventually is recognized for more than the unique defensive skill set that had been his NBA takeoff point.
“I feel like coming into the league, that’s what I was,” he said. “But obviously if you’ve checked my numbers and you’ve seen us play, you’ve seen me grown into a two-way player.
“So I don’t necessarily say pigeonholed, I just know in a lot of the biggest moments I’ve had offense, I’ve had a couple. But I know on defense, I’ve had a lot. I feel like for me, I’m really a two-way player rather than just getting pigeonholed into, ‘He’s a great defender.’ ”
As for the opportunity to show the diversity of his game on both ends going forward, Adebayo said it is a matter of the team concepts flowing on both ends under coach Erik Spoelstra.
“Defense isn’t only about me,” he said. “It’s the other four guys on the court that help this thing work and navigate the way Spo wants it to, the way I want it to, the way the team wants to run.
“And we want to have fun on the other end. So I depend on my teammates a lot when it comes to the other end, feeding me the ball, getting me easy baskets, getting me in a rhythm, so then the game just becomes easier as a whole.”
In the end, the Heat’s only two 2024 league-wide honors were Adebayo’s first-team All-Defensive selection and the first-team All-Rookie selection of Jaime Jaquez Jr.
The league awards were voted upon by a 99-member media panel, with the balloting concluding prior to the postseason.
Having been named second-team All-NBA last year, Heat forward Jimmy Butler was ineligible this year after appearing in only 60 games. The NBA this year for the first time mandated at least 65 appearances over the 82-game regular-season schedule to be eligible for some honors.
Named first-team All-NBA on Wednesday were 2024 NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic, the Denver Nuggets center, along with Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum.
Named to the second team were New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, Los Angeles Lakers center Anthony Davis, Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards and Los Angeles Clippers guard Kawhi Leonard.
Named to the third team were Suns guard Devin Booker, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, Lakers forward LeBron James and Sacramento Kings center Domantas Sabonis.
Adebayo finished 24th overall in the weighted balloting, with one second-team vote and four third-team votes.
For the first time, the NBA this year did not require the teams to be position specific, with several other leading candidates ineligible because of the 65-game rule.
As NBA awards season winds down, the league’s non-playoff focus has turned to the draft, including for Adebayo.
Adebayo, in fact, said he takes particular pride in draft prospects seeking to emulate his ability to defend at all five positions.
“Being able to be as versatile as possible is the reason why I got on the court,” he said. “So when you see kids wanting to implement that and mimic that, it’s just respect for you and what you’ve done in this league so far.”
Haslem perspective
Having offered his thoughts on the state of the Heat in the wake of the team’s first-round playoff demise — including possibly recasting Tyler Herro as a sixth man and adding size alongside Adebayo — former Heat captain Udonis Haslem clarified his stance during a recent episode of his The OGs Podcast.
Haslem, who is working as a studio analyst for ESPN and NBA TV, stressed his thoughts were separate from his role as a Heat executive and the work of Heat president Pat Riley and the team’s personnel wing.
“I have my opinions,” Haslem said. “But I don’t have no seat at the table. I ain’t the coach. I make no calls. You know what I’m saying? I make no rotations. I’m just a guy that continues to drive the culture and focus on being a champion before you even become a champion.
“But at the end of the day, I don’t got no seat at the table to make those decisions. But I do understand that there’s championship expectations here and that’s Riles’ job to focus on that.”
Haslem added, “Those guys over there that’s up top, I’m sure they’ll figure that out. That’s their job.”