NBA Notes: Heat, Bam Adebayo, Nets, Cam Thomas, Wizards

Heat

Bam Adebayo keeps climbing Miami’s record book. He passed Glen Rice for third on the Heat’s all-time scoring list during his 24-point performance on Friday.

Only Dwyane Wade and Alonzo Mourning remain ahead of him, and Adebayo is on track to catch Mourning before the season ends.

“What an achievement,” coach Erik Spoelstra said, via Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “I had no idea. Wow. That’s awesome. He came in as a defensive player and he’s really honed his skills offensively. On a tough night and a tough loss, that’s one heck of an accomplishment.”

It wasn’t enough to get the Heat a win, though. Miami fell 106-105 to the Magic, muting the moment slightly.

“I can’t really put that into words,” Adebayo said. “I would have liked to have done it in a win. But to pass some of these greats, it means a lot. I’m sure when I see Glen, he’ll give me a big hug. That’s my guy.”

Nets

Cam Thomas remains sidelined, but the Nets say his left hamstring strain is healing. An MRI earlier this week showed progress, and he has started on-court work. He will be re-evaluated in about two weeks, with December 21 against Toronto as the earliest realistic return date.

Thomas has strained the same hamstring four times in two seasons and missed all but 25 games last year. The scoring has never been the issue. He averaged 24.4 points in seven healthy games this season.

Everything else has been more complicated. The Nets were 1-7 when he played and 4-10 without him. Brooklyn sits at 5-17, tied for the fourth-worst record in the league.

Thomas signed his one-year, $6 million qualifying offer last offseason and will be an unrestricted free agent in 2026. He also holds veto power on trades next season.

Wizards

Josh Robbins of The Athletic took stock of the Wizards after a 3-17 start. The results have been rough, but Washington is incentivized to lose again.

Their first-round pick is top-eight protected, and staying in that range matters for the rebuild.

There have been bright spots. Kyshawn George and Alex Sarr have shown meaningful growth in their second seasons.

“I think we’ve made a lot of progress,” Sarr said. “There were a lot of games we could have won. It’s frustrating when you look at our record knowing that. But it’s in the past. All we can do is learn from it.”

The Wizards remain in development mode. The standings reflect the pain of that process. The young pieces reflect the hope.