Bam Adebayo, center, hands out backpacks filled with school supplies during his 2026 Back to School Program, on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at Pérez Art Museum Miami in downtown Miami, Fla.
Alie Skowronski
askowronski@miamiherald.com
As Bam Adebayo prepares for his 10th season with the Heat, he’s also embarking on his 10th year in Miami. It’s a city and a community that has become special to him.
“I feel like I’m a Floridian for real,” Adebayo said Tuesday afternoon during a session with reporters at his annual back to school event in Miami.
Adebayo, who grew up in North Carolina, has lived in Miami since the Heat drafted him as a 19-year-old with the 14th overall pick in 2017. Now 29 years old, Adebayo has developed roots in South Florida while also becoming a Heat cornerstone.
On Tuesday, Adebayo helped pass out new backpacks filled with school supplies to 3,500 underserved children at his annual back to school event at the Pérez Art Museum Miami. On Sunday, Adebayo will host his seventh annual youth basketball clinic at SLAM! Miami charter school.
“To have this much impact, to see this outcome like that with all these kids, man, it just shows how far we’ve grown,” Adebayo said. “And to still keep doing this, still be a part of the community, that’s the job in life, to impact people.”
Bam Adebayo, center, poses with kids during Adebayo’s 2026 Back to School Program, on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at Pérez Art Museum Miami in downtown Miami, Fla. Alie Skowronski askowronski@miamiherald.com
Adebayo prioritizes events to serve the South Florida community because he “never had somebody impact me like this as a youth” in North Carolina.
“Being able to do this, be on the ground, make an impact, and show kids that you care,” said Adebayo, who was named the recipient of the 2026 NBA Social Justice Champion award in May. “I feel like that matters when it comes to the profession that we play. Because they come to all our games, cheer us on, hope we win. And the least I can do is give back to them and the parents. So, that’s really what it’s about.”
It’s an important lesson that Adebayo learned from his Heat mentor and close friend Udonis Haslem. Adebayo and Haslem were Heat teammates for six seasons before Haslem retired at the end of the 2022-23 season.
“That’s my OG,” Adebayo said of Haslem during Tuesday’s back to school event. “I don’t need to be giving him credit right now, but I’m going to give him a little credit because he showed me how to handle the community and embrace that. So, I’m thankful for UD and then obviously all the other people and the staff members that are involved in this event alone. I appreciate them because it’s hot, it’s muggy, it’s raining, and they don’t need to be out here. So, just want to say I appreciate all the support.”
Bam Adebayo, center, hands out backpacks filled with school supplies during his 2026 Back to School Program, on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at Pérez Art Museum Miami in downtown Miami, Fla. Alie Skowronski askowronski@miamiherald.com
But while Adebayo is dedicating part of this week to hosting community events around South Florida, he will soon be dedicating time to develop chemistry with his new star Heat teammate Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Heat is scheduled to hold its annual media day on Sept. 28 at Kaseya Center before opening training camp on Sept. 29.
The Heat acquired Antetokounmpo, a two-time NBA MVP, in a blockbuster trade with the Milwaukee Bucks this summer. Antetokounmpo and Adebayo share the same agent in Alex Saratsis.
“I mean, everybody has seen the battles that we had,” Adebayo said when asked Tuesday about the Heat’s addition of Antetokounmpo. “We got the same agent and we talked about, like, what if it would happen? And now we’re to this point. So, I’m excited for the season. I’m excited to be his teammate. I’m excited for the city of Miami, and the energy we gained. And we’re looking to take that momentum into the season.”
The Heat nearly added another former NBA MVP in LeBron James this offseason, but James ultimately decided to join the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency over other options like the Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors. Adebayo and James have become friends after playing together and winning a gold medal with Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“There ain’t no disappointment,” Adebayo said Tuesday of James choosing to sign with the 76ers over the Heat. “To me, you should always be happy for a person and their decision. He made a decision where he feels like it’s his best situation to win. And I feel like I’m a good friend of LeBron’s.”
Then Adebayo, who declined to answer questions on his altercation with former Heat teammate Tyler Herro from earlier this month, laughed and revealed a message that he sent James after his decision to join the 76ers.
“Like I told him in the message, I’m going to bust his a–,” Adebayo said with a smile. “So, it’s going to be an exciting season. I’m excited for the East. We got a whole new turnaround in the East. So, it’s going to be exciting this year.”
But the Antetokounmpo and James moves this offseason are reminders of Adebayo’s unique situation with the Heat.
Adebayo, who is entering the first season of a three-year, $160.3 million extension with the Heat, is one of only eight active NBA players who have been on the same team since the start of the 2017-18 season. It’s a list that only includes Adebayo, Golden State’s Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, Denver’s Nikola Jokic, Phoenix’s Devin Booker, Dallas’ Dwight Powell and Orlando’s Jonathan Isaac.
Adebayo is also one of only three players in the league who are entering their 10th straight season with the same head coach in Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. The other two players are the accomplished Warriors duo of Curry and Green with coach Steve Kerr.
“Not common at all,” Adebayo said of the stability in his NBA career with the Heat. “I’m grateful to be here nine years. I’m looking to be here three more, obviously, and then on. But it’s an exciting city, man. To be a part of this for going on 10 years, and then to have the same coach. I’m blessed to have both of those things. I got an organization that believes in me. So, I’m happy to be here.”
Kids sponsored by FANM, Family Action Network Movement, walk through the line to pick out a backpack filled with school supplies during Bam Adebayo’s 2026 Back to School Program, on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at Pérez Art Museum Miami in downtown Miami, Fla. Alie Skowronski askowronski@miamiherald.com
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Anthony Chiang covers the Miami Heat for the Miami Herald. He attended the University of Florida and was born and raised in Miami.