“Is Spo Wearing the Same Watch?”: Bam Adebayo Hilariously Highlights Erik Spoelstra’s 30-Year Tenure With Heat

Erik Spoelstra went undrafted in the 1992 NBA Draft. However, for almost three decades now, he has been making other players’ dreams come true by playing a crucial role in the Miami Heat’s draft process. Recently, the Heat posted a clip of coach Spo on their Instagram account which showed him making calls in 1995 and then doing the same in 2024. While it’s just a sight to behold, Bam Adebayo saw something else in it.

The three-time All-Star shared the post on his IG story to outline a hilarious detail in the two clips. The official account of Heat captioned the post, “Then and now. 30 Miami HEAT Drafts for Spo.” Several fans in the comment section rallied to admire all the work that he has done for the franchise.

Fans left comments such as, “Coach Spo is my favorite coach all of time,” and “This glorious man could lead a band of chihuahua’s to the finals.” However, Adebayo had his eyes set on something completely unrelated.

The 26-year-old noticed that coach Spo’s watch might be the same in both the clips. Resharing the post on his IG story, he wrote,

“Is Spo wearing the same watch from 1995???”

While this is a hilarious thing to point out, it also speaks of the attention to detail that Adebayo has. And if his assumption is true, maybe it’s time for the 53-year-old to change his watch.

Regardless, Adebayo gave his followers a good laugh with his attention to detail. There is, however, a possibility of that being his lucky watch because both the clips were from the NBA Draft and since the athletes tend to be more superstitious than common people, coach Spo might believe the watch is his lucky charm.

How Erik Spoelstra ended up in Miami?

Spoelstra was one of the most promising young talents in basketball during his college tenure. However, in 1992, when he appeared in the NBA Draft, he wasn’t picked by any team. His first professional job was that of a player–assistant coach for TuS Herten, a Westphalia-based professional club. Unfortunately, after only his second year, he started having back problems and had to undergo surgery for the same.

After that, his playing career was pretty much over, but it was the start of something more important. He was offered a two-year coaching contract by TuS Herten and at the same time, the Miami Heat also offered him an assistant coach job. As an AC for the team, he won one NBA title in 2006.

After working as an assistant coach until 2008, he was made the head coach of the franchise and has been in that position since then. Under his tenure, the Heat have won two NBA titles in 2012 and 2013. In 2017, Spo shared the inaugural NBCA Coach of Year Award with Mike D’Antoni. In an interview back then, Rick Carlisle, NBCA president, said, “The tie was legitimate and there were five or six others who received significant votes… So it really spoke to the quality job that everybody did from top to bottom.”