NBA FINALS: HEAT VS. NUGGETS

May 31, 2023

Bam Adebayo

Miami Heat

Media Day

Q. Jokic is such a unique player, and he's shown he can pretty much score from any part of the floor, so when you are just trying to make things tough for him, what does making it tough for him look like? What are you trying to force him into?

BAM ADEBAYO: Tough shots, difficult shots. Trying to get him in an uncomfortable zone and force him to take tough shots.

Q. A few minutes ago Spo said that there's no Jokic stopper, that it's throw bodies at him. Do you agree with that?

BAM ADEBAYO: You said what?

Q. Spo said that there's no stopper when it comes to Jokic, that you've got to throw bodies at him, throw different looks at him, but you match up, or at least you do during the regular season. How much do you think that the challenge is on you to stay in front of him and limit him?

BAM ADEBAYO: Make him take tough shots, force him into tough shots, and live with the result. That's the biggest thing for me.

I feel like this is one of those series where he becomes very dangerous when you let his teammates get involved, and he can make those incredible passes and end up with 12 assists.

Q. How much has you guys' trust in one another guided you guys through all of the many obstacles, all the adversity you've faced this season? If it weren't for that, would you even be here? What does that look like behind the scenes?

BAM ADEBAYO: Man, we've definitely had moments in this run where people thought we couldn't do it. People thought we weren't going to make this, weren't going to do that. You know, when you've got the trust in your 15, the coaching staff and whoever is getting on that plane with you, when everybody believes and has a trust, I feel like you can do anything.

Q. Bam, in the last round we saw what Jokic did to Anthony Davis as far as being able to score on him and the way that he compromised the defense. You just mentioned that you don't want the other guards for Denver getting off because of Jokic's ability to pass. Are you willing to sit there and eat 45 or 50 if that's what it calls for from Jokic?

BAM ADEBAYO: Does it end in a win?

Q. You can decide that.

BAM ADEBAYO: If it ends in a win, it doesn't matter. You can talk about stats, you can talk about this guy did that, did this and that. But you know at the end of the day, they're going to remember the people who won.

Q. Bam, I'm curious, at what age did you start developing the confidence to be a leader, and who is someone that helped you become a leader, the type that we're seeing today?

BAM ADEBAYO: My mom. I know I talk about her a lot. I hope she doesn't call me during media.

But it's been my mom because she's been a leader in my life, since I've been born. Seeing my mom go through every adversity, all the adversity she's been through, my mom walked to work, my mom was a single parent, we lived in a single wide trailer. I lived off of $12,000 a year from my mom. Having that type of person lead, I feel like it was just bound for me to be able to get in that mold.

Definitely uncomfortable when you first start being -- when people start looking at you and saying you have to be more vocal, you have to be a leader of the ship. I just look back at those days how my mom just lived for me, and it was by example.

Q. You touched on it, but leadership comes in all forms, by example, vocal. Have you found what fits best for you?

BAM ADEBAYO: I've always had that will to lead by example, but every moment in the moments of truth, I'll take the chair, and it counts for whatever it counts for, maybe once or twice a game, just depending on it. I feel like it's by example, and I'm the person that if you're going through something, I will come to you and talk to you.

Everybody has their different versions.

Q. We've already seen pretty much all the coverages, but on the spectrum of Milwaukee, New York, Boston, how much of a crowd do you expect to be playing in when you get paint catches?

BAM ADEBAYO: A lot. I feel like that's been the biggest thing in a lot of series, not letting me be comfortable in the paint, get to my spots. So biggest thing for me is just watching film, making adjustments, and figuring it out.

Q. Through Caleb's journey with you guys, what's been your favorite part of seeing him grow and what he's been doing now?

BAM ADEBAYO: Man, the swagger Caleb plays with. That's my biggest thing, because when he got here, he was truly quiet. Like Caleb was one of those people, he's like, it's like a morning person that doesn't talk in the morning, but he was like that all day. [Laughter].

We'll be in practice and he'll maybe say three words, and the only reason he'll say those three words to me is because I've known Caleb since we've been in high school.

Now seeing him communicate, talk, really be himself on the court, express himself, I feel like that's the biggest -- those are the biggest steps I've seen him make, and I'm truly proud of him.

Q. Because you're such a defensive mind, do you do a lot of reading of stats, analytics? Does that interest you at all?

BAM ADEBAYO: I really look at film, not really analytics. But I definitely do watch film, look at tendencies, look at plays, see if I can see hand motions to see what types of plays they're running. Just the little things, the little details that you don't look at throughout a game, I try to find the little things in the film.