“It gets to the point where, as a man, you don’t want to see your mom struggle anymore,” said Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo.
This, as a statement, is inspiring.
A green single-wide trailer, in a small, rural part of North Carolina, and a single mother working tirelessly, barely making enough to get by. Those are the conditions Adebayo came from. Now, he cements his place in the Heat franchise and NBA history with the performance of a lifetime.
“Knowing what he comes from now adds a new level of inspiration to this game,” said OH varsity basketball player Jake Voelker.
Adebayo continues to be an inspiration to many, as on Mar. 10th, he put up a record-breaking 83 points against the Washington Wizards, surpassing the late great Kobe Bryant, and putting himself behind Wilt Chamberlain’s controversial 100-point game.
Adebayo also broke a long-standing Heat record when he scored 31 points in the first quarter, outscoring the entire Wizards team, which had 29 points. That was the most points in a single quarter in Heat history, putting himself above LeBron James, who previously held the record with 25 points against his previous team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, in 2014.
“No matter what people say, 83 points is insane, and I think he broke a LeBron record, which could have made headlines alone, and I think they have similar stories too,” said OH junior volleyball player Tristen Poyser.
Adebayo grew up with his single mother, Marilyn Blount, who worked at a local meat farm, often up to 10 hours a day, only earning around $240 a week. His mother did everything to keep food on the table and clothes on his back, often waking up around 3 in the morning; this was his inspiration and motivation to make it out.
“In an interview I remember he said that he always keeps his mom close and rents her her own hotels for games and has bought her houses, that’s what I want to do one day,” said OH alum Isaiah Martel “I mean he has 2 gold medals and the second best points in a game how can you not see some inspiration.”
His drive to repay and give his mother the life she never had led to a list of accomplishments that few who have ever played at the top level have ever seen. Adebayo is a two-time gold medalist, has the 2nd all-time scoring game, is a 3-time NBA All-star selection, 5-time NBA All-Defensive team selection, NBA All-Star Skills Challenge Champion, and 3-time NBA Player of the Week.
“Seeing him accomplish what he has makes me believe I could if I really put the work in, we’ll see, though,” said Martel.
Adebayo is living proof that no matter where you come from or who you are, with enough drive and dedication to what you do, you can achieve whatever you wish to and maybe even more.
Hi! My name is Anthony Martel, I am a Senior at Oswego High School and this is my first year being apart of the 42Fifty staff. You can contact me by emailing 42Fifty@sd308.org and putting my name in the subject line. We welcome comments on our articles and feedback on our publication!
