Heat’s Bam Adebayo reflects on A’ja Wilson’s latest feat: ‘You’re the greatest of all time’

Miami Heat admin October 9, 2026 0 Comments

Heat’s Bam Adebayo reflects on A’ja Wilson’s latest feat: ‘You’re the greatest of all time’

It’s only the NBA preseason, but Miami Heat three-time All-Star center Bam Adebayo celebrated a major accomplishment this week.

Adebayo celebrated his girlfriend A’ja Wilson’s historic achievement, as the Las Vegas Aces star was named the WNBA’s Most Valuable Player on Thursday for a league record fifth time. Wilson, 30, is also the first player in league history to win three straight MVPs.

“It’s good to celebrate somebody that honestly deserves it,” Adebayo, 29, said after the Heat’s 128-118 preseason home win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night. “You really can’t put five MVPs into words. You literally just have to sit there and just admire greatness. So yeah, I can’t wait to get home, get on FaceTime and talk about the moment.”

Adebayo found out Wilson won another WNBA MVP award before she did, as he prerecorded a congratulatory message for his longtime partner. Wilson listened to Adebayo’s message after finding out Thursday she again earned the honor.

“I want to say congratulations, Sweets, on your fifth MVP,” Adebayo said in his prerecorded message to Wilson, with the moment she heard it captured on social media. “It’s truly special to see you become this player that you’ve become. Not only the player, but the person that you’ve become.

“I just can’t put into words how special you are to not only me, but the Aces, the city of Vegas. When you do what you do, you change so many people’s lives, and it’s so impactful, and I’m blessed to be a part of it. You have five [MVPs], and I’m here to gas you up every single day. I don’t care what anybody else says. You’re the greatest of all time. I want you to know it will always be celebrated. I will always celebrate you. I will always be the one to be like, yeah, that’s my wife getting the fifth MVP.”

Adebayo and Wilson have been publicly linked since they each represented Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics, with Wilson attending plenty of Heat games to support Adebayo and Adebayo attending a lot of Aces games to support Wilson since.

While Adebayo was at practice in Miami on Friday ahead of Saturday’s home preseason matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves ((8 p.m., WPLG Local 10), Wilson was in Las Vegas preparing for Friday night’s Game 3 of the Aces’ semifinals playoff series against the Golden State Valkyrie.

“When I’m not in season and she is, I try to do the best to remind her of who she is. And vice versa,” Adebayo said Thursday. “When you have those types of moments, those need to be celebrated. You need to have those types of memories where when you look back 10, 15 years from now, you can always go back to that picture, the video, the phone call. You can be able to snap back and enjoy that moment again.”

Heat’s roster moves

The Heat made roster moves following Thursday’s exhibition involving its Exhibit 10 players.

The Heat waived guard Lester Quinones and forward J’Vonne Hadley from their Exhibit 10 deals.

The Heat then signed and immediately waived veteran guard Dennis Smith Jr. from an Exhibit 10 contract before signing guard Gabe Madsen and center Kylor Kelley to Exhibit 10 deals. Madsen and Kelley practiced with the Heat on Friday.

An Exhibit 10 contract is essentially an invitation to training camp/preseason and protects players from being signed by another team. Exhibit 10 deals usually result in a player being waived before the start of the regular season and then being transitioned to that team’s G League affiliate.

While it’s possible that an Exhibit 10 contract player could impress enough to earn a two-way contract from the Heat, the likelihood is that Miami’s Exhibit 10 players will be funneled to its G League affiliate in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, after being waived by the Heat prior to the start of the regular season. In that scenario, each player would get as much as $91,000 guaranteed if he spends 60 days with the Skyforce.

Smith, 28, is the most notable name in this group, as he was the No. 9 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

Smith, who hasn’t appeared in an NBA game since 2024, spent part of the 2024-25 season playing for Real Madrid. He then spent last season in the G League, splitting time with the Wisconsin Herd before ending the season with the Skyforce.

Smith has averaged 9.7 points and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 40.7% from the field and 29.8% from three-point range in 326 NBA appearances (152 starts) across seven NBA seasons. He has spent time with the New York Knicks, Dallas Mavericks, Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Portland Trail Blazers and Detroit Pistons.

The Heat’s plan in signing and immediately releasing Smith is to transition him to its G League affiliate.

“We like Dennis,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of the move following Friday’s practice. “Obviously, we’ve invested in his development. We think he also helps our development in Sioux Falls with the guys, having a quarterback there that’s experienced. But we know that he still wants to get back in the league, and we want to try to help. We hope it really can be a symbiotic relationship where he’s helping us develop the young guys by playing the right way and setting guys up and making the game easier for them. Hopefully, we can make his dream happen as well.”

The Heat’s roster is still at the 21-player preseason maximum.

Who will play?

While the Heat played its rotation regulars in each of its first two preseason games, Spoelstra was noncommital about playing the regulars in the Heat’s third preseason game on Saturday against the Timberwolves.

“I’m going to sleep on it,” Spoelstra said with a wry smile. “I’m going to think about it, mull over it.”

The Heat also opens the regular season against the Timberwolves in Miami on Oct. 21.