The Miami Heat once again came out flat against the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday as the defending Eastern Conference champs fell to a 2-0 deficit against their opponents in the opening round. Heat big man Bam Adebayo has been taking a lot of stick lately, and apparently, even Shaquille O'Neal thinks that we need to see more from Bam.
After another disappointing Game 2 performance from Adebayo and the Heat, Shaq provided a bit of advice for Miami's embattled big man:
“Bam is always just trying to run the play,” Shaq said (h/t Five Reasons Sports Network on Twitter). “They’re giving him space. He needs to take a couple of dribbles and collapse the defense.”




O'Neal is not the first personality to call out Adebayo. After their Game 1 loss, Heat teammate Goran Dragic also pointed out that Bam has lacked aggression against the Bucks. Shaq appears to be on the same page in terms of requiring more from Adebayo.
The Heat are in a world of trouble right now. They've placed themselves in a 2-0 hole against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks, and at this point, things are looking bleak for Miami. This is not all on Bam, though. Pretty much the entire Heat squad failed to show up on Monday as they got completely blown out by the Bucks from the get-go.
The good news for Adebayo and his Heat is that the series will now shift back to Miami. All hope is not lost, but it's hard to argue against the notion that Games 3 and 4 will be must-win contests for the struggling Heat.