No Suspension! NBA Clears Bam Adebayo After Herro Altercation
The NBA has opted not to penalize Miami Heat's Bam Adebayo for a recent physical altercation with former teammate Tyler Herro in Las Vegas. The incident stemmed from Herro's social media critiques of Adebayo, leading to a confrontation that both players and the league are now eager to put behind them. This comes after Herro's trade to the Milwaukee Bucks, ending their seven-year stint as teammates.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) has decided against imposing any disciplinary action on Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo following a physical altercation with former teammate Tyler Herro. The incident, which occurred last Friday at a Las Vegas gym, was confirmed by an NBA spokesperson to ESPN's Shams Charania. After consultations with both players and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), the league stated that all parties preferred to move past the "unfortunate circumstance," and no further measures would be taken.
Tyler Herro, now a guard for the Milwaukee Bucks, had previously expressed his desire to "move on" from the situation in an interview with ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, emphasizing his focus on his new team and building something significant in Milwaukee after the trade of their franchise player, Giannis Antetokounmpo. Herro's move to Milwaukee marked the end of his seven-year tenure as Adebayo's teammate in Miami, a trade that was part of a blockbuster deal for Antetokounmpo.
Sources familiar with the encounter indicated that the altercation began when Adebayo confronted Herro about critical comments the guard had reportedly made on social media. These comments allegedly questioned Adebayo's $60 million salary and suggested that if Herro had been healthy, he would have been the Heat player needing more support from his teammates. This appeared to be a direct response to Adebayo's earlier remarks after the Heat's elimination in the play-in tournament, where he suggested he needed more support to lead Miami back to title contention.
The verbal exchange quickly escalated into a physical confrontation. According to sources, Adebayo struck Herro near his chin. While descriptions of the exact nature of the physical contact are somewhat disputed, Herro was not knocked to the ground and was reportedly restrained by others present in the gym from retaliating. Despite their professional relationship growing apart over the past year, Heat sources confirmed that Adebayo and Herro generally maintained a good rapport during their time together as teammates. This shift was attributed to Herro playing only 33 games due to various injuries and his struggles to adapt to changes in the team's offensive strategies.
Both players have notable careers. Tyler Herro, a former Sixth Man of the Year award winner, averaged 20.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.1 assists across 33 games in the 2025-26 season, having missed the season's start due to left ankle surgery. He was an All-Star in the 2024-25 season, averaging 23.9 points, 5.5 assists, and 5.2 rebounds over 77 games. Bam Adebayo, a three-time All-Star, was named to the All-Defensive first team in 2023-24 and the All-Defensive second team five times, including last season. Last season, he averaged 20.1 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.2 steals. Adebayo also set a franchise record by scoring 83 points against the Washington Wizards in March, surpassing Kobe Bryant's 81 points for the second-most points in a single NBA game in history.