NBA Notes: Heat, Bam Adebayo, Lakers, Marcus Smart, Knicks

Heat

Heat big man Bam Adebayo didn’t dodge it. He owned it.

After another inefficient night on the road, Adebayo acknowledged Friday that he has to be better. As Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald noted, Adebayo is just 10-of-23 from inside the arc and 0-of-3 from three-point range over the first two games of the trip, with three of his attempts getting blocked.

“I got to figure it out,” Adebayo said. “I’m accepting accountability. I’ve got to be better. I’m letting my team down.”

On a night when Adebayo struggled, Kel’el Ware delivered a bright spot, scoring a team-high 24 points and knocking down a career-best six three-pointers in Friday’s loss to Boston.

“I’m just getting more comfortable out there,” Ware said. “Playing through the game, playing through the flow.”

Lakers

Lakers guard Marcus Smart was fined $35,000 for making an obscene gesture toward a game official, the NBA announced Saturday.

The incident occurred at halftime of Thursday’s win in Utah, when Smart directed a middle finger toward the referees, according to Dan Woike of The Athletic.

Through 17 games in his first season with Los Angeles, Smart is averaging 10.6 points, 2.9 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 1.6 steals in just over 27 minutes per game.

The shooting numbers are modest, but the impact is not. The Lakers are plus-8.5 points per 100 possessions with Smart on the floor and minus-2.8 when he sits, driven largely by defensive improvement.

Smart signed a two-year, $10.5 million deal over the summer following a buyout with Washington, which will carry $14.8 million in dead money next season as a result.

Knicks

Knicks wing OG Anunoby turned in a rare off night during Friday’s nine-point loss to Philadelphia, finishing with two points on 1-of-9 shooting.

Jared Schwartz of the New York Post noted Anunoby struggled to make an impact on either end, though coach Mike Brown took issue with how the game was officiated.

“I don’t know if I’ll ever understand what’s a foul and what’s not,” Brown said, pointing to the difference in how stronger drivers like Anunoby are officiated compared to quicker players who initiate contact.

Anunoby, Brown said, was trying to attack the rim, not sell contact. On this night, it didn’t matter much either way.