After the Miami Heat sent Tyler Herro to the Milwaukee Bucks in the blockbuster Giannis Antetokounmpo trade, private messages in which the guard criticized Bam Adebayo were leaked online.
This sparked a physical altercation between the two former teammates, resulting in Adebayo reportedly punching Herro. Heat president Pat Riley has now spoken about the incident.
Pat Riley Weighs In on Tyler Herro-Bam Adebayo Altercation
The altercation between Adebayo and Herro occurred at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas on July 10, following the leak of messages in which the latter criticized his former teammate. Adebayo confronted Herro and reportedly punched him in the face.
Riley had his say on the incident during his appearance on “The Dan Le Batard Show.” The Heat president criticized Adebayo’s actions and also lamented that the two players did not get a chance to hash things out before the situation escalated.
“I didn’t like it. I didn’t like it for Bam. I didn’t even know he was upset because I read it, and I didn’t like what I read. Social media has consequences and he got offended by it. I don’t think they had time to talk about it,” Riley said.
Speaking on the fractured relationship between the two former teammates, Riley called them “competitive men.” Despite that, the NBA legend is confident that they will patch things up over time.
“I was sorry to see that it happened, and I was more sorry to see what happened with Bam. It‘s over with, that’s it, league’s not going to do anything about it, and somewhere they’ll patch up,” Riley added.
Riley also lamented the role of social media in the skirmish, claiming that “vitriol” on platforms like X can lead to real-world consequences.
“Players are addicted to social media. When you start going on X and start responding to somebody who’s criticizing you in some way… Things can happen. That’s the world we live in. Seems like there’s more vitriol than there’s ever been,” Riley concluded.
Adebayo and Herro were teammates on the Heat for seven seasons and led the franchise to two NBA Finals. However, things seemingly went awry behind the scenes, leading to Herro venting about Adebayo’s salary and the subsequent altercation.
Now on the Bucks, Herro will look for a fresh start with his hometown franchise after an injury-riddled 2025-26 season. Meanwhile, Adebayo will form the Heat’s new-look one-two punch alongside Antetokounmpo.
