Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro were involved in a physical altercation Friday morning in Las Vegas, according to ESPN Senior NBA Insider Shams Charania.
The incident happened on a practice court at a Las Vegas hotel during NBA Summer League week, when plenty of rookies and NBA names are in town. Former Kentucky Wildcats are scattered across the rosters and around the city, and two of the most familiar faces from that group ended up in a confrontation.
Charania reported that Adebayo struck Herro after the two got into a dispute tied to social media comments in which Herro criticized Adebayo’s play.
The Athletic added more detail, saying multiple sources who witnessed the incident described Adebayo walking onto the courts and Herro saying something to him. Adebayo then approached Herro and, without hesitation, punched him.
Herro’s AAU coach stepped in and confronted Adebayo, while Herro yelled at his former teammate as security escorted him away. Both players left on their own.
Adebayo and Herro were teammates in Miami and, by the source’s account, had a strong friendship and good chemistry there. That makes the scene in Las Vegas even more jarring.
The connection between them has been warm in the past. In an earlier interview, Herro asked Adebayo which teammate would always have his back in a fight, and Adebayo answered, “I’m going to say Tyler (Herro) just because we got the longest relationship,” Adebayo said.
For now, the hope is simple: these former Wildcats can get back on good terms.
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