The real reason Heat’s Bam Adebayo was pissed after Game 2 win vs. Nuggets
Bam Adebayo, Jimmy Butler, and the Miami Heat came up with a massive victory in Game 2 of the 2023 NBA Finals, defeating the Denver Nuggets, 111-108. The win gave Miami home-court advantage with the series shifting to South Florida for Games 3 and 4.
Bam Adebayo had another fantastic game for the Heat, finishing with 21 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and two blocks, not to mention his stellar defensive effort on Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets. Jimmy Butler finished with 21 points, four rebounds, and nine assists, clearly playing through the ankle injury he suffered in Game 7 of the last series.
If you watched the NBA Finals broadcast of Nuggets-Heat Game 2 all the way to the end, you’ll have noticed that Bam Adebayo appeared to be visibly upset with someone after the win. Following the postgame interview with ESPN’s Lisa Salters, Adebayo could be heard over the broadcast saying, ‘stop doing that sh*t,’ in the direction of someone standing next to him with another person apologizing.
For those wondering, it appears to me as if Jimmy Butler was supposed to do 1 of the 2 on-court interviews, but he left right away.
Bam Adebayo was left do to both, and I think that’s what he wasn’t happy about. Don’t think there’s anything else here. pic.twitter.com/qvZxUD4TzB
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) June 5, 2023
There were a lot of theories about what went on in the seemingly random, heated exchange Bam Adebayo had with the person.
After listening to the audio of the conversation, it appeared as though Jimmy Butler was supposed to remain on the court after the game so that the two could conduct the two interviews before heading back to the locker room. Butler, however, left the court immediately after contesting Jamal Murray’s potential game-tying shot, leaving Bam Adebayo all to himself.
In the clip, Adebayo is approached by an NBA PR member, apologizing that he has to do a second interview in place of Butler. Adebayo then turns to a member of the Heat PR staff and, based on the conversation, it sounded like a situation of this nature had occurred once before.
For those wondering, it appears to me as if Jimmy Butler was supposed to do 1 of the 2 on-court interviews, but he left right away.
Bam Adebayo was left do to both, and I think that’s what he wasn’t happy about. Don’t think there’s anything else here. pic.twitter.com/qvZxUD4TzB
— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) June 5, 2023
Bam Adebayo conducted both on-court interviews as well as his postgame press conference professionally, and the win itself certainly helped to move on from the nuisance he’ll likely forget about by morning.
The series will officially shift to South Florida now, where the Miami Heat will host Gam 3 on Wednesday night and Game 4 on Friday night.
