MIAMI – As the Miami Heat and Jimmy Butler trade drama continues amidst his return, there was a different story taking the limelight during the team's win over the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, 128-107. The Heat finally showcased Bam Adebayo and Kel'el Ware together on the court for an extended period in what was a long-awaited sight as head coach Erik Spoelstra spoke about the decision.
Miami started slow against San Antonio but the tides started to turn when Spoelstra decided to put Adebayo and Ware together on the floor as what transpired was a 14-2 run and eventually a 36-13 run which put the team well ahead of the opponents. Ware even led the team with 25 points on 10 for 19 shooting from the field to go with eight rebounds and two blocks as Spoelstra said to ClutchPoints that both were the “initial spark” that led to the team finding their winning ways.
“That was definitely the initial spark to the game,” Spoelstra said. “You know, they just were tremendous defensively. That kind of ignited the energy for the group, and then we were able to get something transition, and then, you know, our offense obviously started flowing from there. You know, this old head coach has been trying to get the team to connect the dots. Usually, when we defend, we play with that energy. The basket gets bigger for us. You know, our offense hasn't been where we wanted to be all year long.”
Asked Spo about the extended minutes for Bam Adebayo, Kel’el Ware together.
“That was definitely the initial spark to the game…they were dynamic, this was something we’ve been slowly starting to work on…I know Kel’el generates a lot of opinions, let us do our job…”#HeatNation pic.twitter.com/kXxPZZqbDz— Zachary Weinberger (@ZachWeinberger) January 19, 2025
Heat's Erik Spoelstra on the development of Kel'el Ware
The talk of Ware and Adebayo playing together had been around since the rookie was drafted with the 15th overall pick in the last NBA Draft where the latter would move to the power forward position instead of being a center which he had been for years. The Heat's captain would score six points in the game but also had 11 rebounds and five assists as Spoelstra spoke more about how dynamic both are and how Ware has been commanding the attention of the team.
“They were dynamic,” Spoelstra said. “This is something that we've been slowly starting to work on. I know that Kel'el generates a lot of opinions out there, you know, let us do our job. Let him do what he's been doing. You know, the initial thing was to develop, get him comfortable in a role where he could really impact the game.”
“And the second unit has been coming along. It's been one of our bright spots the last several weeks, and he's really been getting comfortable in that role, and what he's done with his play and his ability to impact the game is earn more,” Spoelstra continued. “And that's what you're seeing. That's what you want all players you know to do, earn more. Make us watch you, make us have to play you, make us have to think about not playing you, make us continue to figure out other things and just keep you on the court. And that's what he's doing right now.”
Heat's Kel'el Ware on waiting for Bam Adebayo pairing
Ware would even start the second half alongside Adebayo and continued their dominance as Miami scored 46 points in the third period, then leading to 82 points in the second half, which is a franchise record. Players like Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro benefitted from having a bigger lineup as the shooting percentage drastically went up for the team, each scoring 11 in the third period.
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The Heat's first-round pick would talk about his outing and how he had been waiting alongside Adebayo for the opportunity to play together.
“It was exciting,” Ware said. “You know, me and Bam, you know, been wanting to happen. And, you know, just for it to happen, we have, you know, make the best out of it for the first time. So, you know, we show people what it looked like a little bit.”
Bam Adebayo on another layer the Heat has unlocked with Kel'el Ware
As Spoelstra mentioned, playing both Adebayo and Ware had been a work in progress throughout the season, and had seen both of them play recently in end-of-quarter situations. This was the first time there were extended minutes between the two as Adebayo spoke after the game about how finally Spoelstra “trusted the process.”
“It just gives us another dynamic to our team,” Adebayo said. “And finally, Spo [Spoelstra] trusted the process, I guess, but it is one of those things where he finally committed to it, it worked, and now I feel like there'd be some moving forward. You know, he might get a couple DPOYs out of this thing, couple All-Defensive teams out of my young fella. So the biggest thing for us is just enjoy this win, but understand we still got to keep going, keep leading each other, and stay together.”
It remains to be seen if the Adebayo-Ware pairing will continue as some could argue it was to somewhat maintain the size of Spurs' sensation Victor Wembanyama. On the other hand, it led to an offensive resurgence unlike what the team has seen this season in a very unique lineup as the Heat are now 21-20 as they next face the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday.
