Bam Adebayo Speaks On How The Miami Heat Will Play Through Jimmy Butler Drama

The Miami Heat have dealt with trade rumors among their core players before, but never for their best player, Jimmy Butler.

With Butler likely gone, the remaining two top players, Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo, should focus on leading their team to victory without expecting him to return. This is especially true for Adebayo, who was named Captain of the team and replaced Udonis Haslem when he retired in 2023. 

Adebayo spoke to the media during the Heat’s shootaround today, expressing his disappointment with the drama of the last 48 hours.

“You go through this league with purity, and for us, it’s just taking it one game at a time,” Adebayo said. “It’s disappointing when you see the organization and the player going head-to-head, but the rest of us have to figure out how to win games because that’s still going to happen. For me, as captain, it’s worrying about the other guys and getting them locked in and ready to go try and compete to win a game.”

He was later asked how he and the team would feel if Butler was eventually traded because the team’s statement insinuated he may get moved soon.

“I mean (expletive), you live with what happens,” Adebayo said. “Like I said, we’re worried about what we can control, and we can’t control that. It’s up to the management and him. That is their decision, that’s them communicating with him, and we still have to go out there and win games.” 

The Heat are 5-5 without Butler this season. Now, with more clarity about his unlikely return, everyone’s role should be more established and confident to step up without worrying about a brief stint of increased minutes until he returns.

Bryan Townes is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI. He can be reached at [email protected] or on X @bryantownesjr11. Follow our coverage on Facebook.