The Miami Heat missed out on bringing LeBron James back to South Beach this offseason, but Bam Adebayo has made it clear there are no hard feelings.
The Heat captain said his relationship with James remains as strong as ever despite the four-time MVP choosing to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers instead of Miami.
“I’m cool with Bron,” Adebayo said. “I consider Bron like a brother, honestly. We’ve been Olympic teammates, but even before that, we’ve always had down-to-earth conversations. So I’m happy for him. You want what’s best for somebody, and that’s really how you go from there.”
James’ arrival in Philadelphia immediately strengthened an already competitive Eastern Conference.
While Miami fell short in its pursuit of James, the franchise still landed arguably the biggest move of the summer by acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks.
Adebayo admitted he’s eager to begin playing alongside the two-time MVP.
“You look forward to it,” Adebayo said. “You look forward to the excitement around the season. I feel like Pat [Riley] has been trying to get somebody that star level for a while now. So, being able to have that shift and that change, we’re looking for growth. We’re looking at obviously winning games and having some fun.”
The pair wasted little time getting on the same page after Antetokounmpo’s arrival.
“We’re ready to get to work,” Adebayo said. “The goal is to win a championship. That’s his mindset. We have a like mindset when it comes to that. So those conversations are really about winning.”
Despite adding one of the league’s premier superstars, Miami still faces questions about whether the roster has enough shooting and playmaking to contend for a title. Adebayo isn’t concerned with the outside criticism.
“We’ll figure it out,” Adebayo said. “We don’t really worry about the outside noise too much. We’ve done a lot more with less in our past years before, so we’ll figure it out.”
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