So why did Bam Adebayo take flight to New York while sidelined with a toe sprain?
Because, as confirmed by the most reliable of sources, love is in the air.
On the same day Adebayo and the Heat took flight for Friday night’s game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, Adebayo’s girlfriend, WNBA superstar A’ja Wilson, sat down with Robin Roberts for an interview on Good Morning America.
Among the topics touched upon were Wilson’s recent championship run with the Las Vegas Aces, the ongoing WNBA contract negotiations and Wilson’s support from her parents.
And then Roberts turned to a subject that Adebayo has largely attempted to keep private but Wilson has been more public about in recent weeks, now so often spotted alongside Adebayo at Heat games and elsewhere.
Asked about what often has been a long-distance relationship based on conflicting playing schedules, Wilson opened up about how the two have made it work through appreciation of their common professional goals.
“It’s just what we do,” Wilson told Roberts of their coupling. “That’s our foundation that we just built when our relationship kind of first started and we were just like, ‘You know, this isn’t going to be easy, obviously, with our schedules and our lifestyle.’ But at the end of the day, if we want it to work, we’re going to make it work for each other.
“And when we see the behind the scenes, and we see the down days, the good days, you have to show up. Because you know how hard it is, too, the work that it took to get to that point.”
So, yes, a relationship that has blossomed.
“So he’s in my eyes, he’s perfect. He’s perfect. He can do no wrong,” Wilson said with a smile. “Obviously, he’s human, but the support that he gives is always, is just, it’s incredible to kind that I’ve kind of met my match.”
Adebayo opened up more about the relationship during the preseason, as he jetted to Wilson’s games during the WNBA Finals.
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“Just to have somebody that you can actually talk to from a different perspective, different lens, obviously different coaching,” Adebayo said of the pros of being close to another pro. “For me, being able to watch somebody that great and ask questions after the game. I feel like that’s the biggest way she’s helped me, just allowing me to ask questions and giving me honest answers.”
The Jaquez factor
Having declined to address it as an issue after the Cavaliers put the height of centers Jarrett Allen and Thomas Bryant defensively on forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. in Cleveland’s Wednesday night victory at Kaseya Center, Spoelstra went into more detail at Friday morning’s shootaround at Madison Square Garden.
“I’m sure more teams will put the five on him,” Spoelstra said. “The quicker we can get to that, what teams do consistently, the better we’re going to be able to adjust and co-adjust.
“Even the other night, he was able to get to the rim. He missed four or five that I know there’s bigger size on him. But if three of those go down, it could change things.”
Spoelstra expressed confidence in Jaquez being able to make the required adjustments.
“His playmaking is improving, so that will continue to be an element of his attack,” Spoelstra said. “Us adjusting to not have him be aggressive, that’s not it. We want him to be aggressive, be who he is, and we’ll figure it out. He’ll figure it out.”
