Much has been said about Bam Adebayo being a key piece to the Miami Heat’s championship aspirations and the fact that his struggles sometimes limit where the team can go.
But it seems like the Heat star has taken it upon himself to be aggressive in this year’s playoffs. As a result, Miami is two wins away from making it to the 2023 NBA Finals. Adebayo is averaging 18.5 points per game in the 2023 NBA Playoffs, his best scoring average in any of his five trips to the playoffs in his career.
Even so, he is not content and has his sights set on winning a title.
Asked Bam if he’s satisfied to be averaging a career high in playoff points after the way teams defended him last year.
“I won’t be satisfied until we raise one.”
— Rohan Nadkarni (@RohanNadkarni) May 21, 2023
One of the strengths of the 2022-23 Heat is the selfless players on the roster who share a common goal of raising another championship banner for the franchise, with the charge led by Jimmy Butler and Adebayo. Miami has inched closer and closer to that objective this postseason, taking out higher-seeded opponents in the first two rounds before taking a 2-0 lead on the Boston Celtics in the ongoing Eastern Conference Finals.
Adebayo has provided the Heat with a needed scoring spark, and his 15 shots per match in the playoffs suggest that the two-time All-Star has been intent on punishing opponents. He has also shown that he isn’t afraid to mix it up on offense and shoot from the midrange, as 32.8 percent of his shots have come 10 to 16 feet from the basket.
Considering that the big man attempted just 9.7 shots per game from the field in last year’s playoffs, he has certainly disproved the notion that he can’t step up on offense when it matters the most.
In the first two contests against the Celtics in the current series, Adebayo scored at least 20 points both times out. Game 1 saw him put up an efficient 20 points on 9-for-13 shooting. In Game 2, he was a bit shakier on offense, scoring 22 points on 7-for-17 shooting. Fortunately, he did plenty of damage in other areas of the game, as he registered 17 rebounds and nine assists.
The Heat will need Adebayo to maintain or improve his strong play to boost their chances of eliminating Boston. Leading 2-0 with the next two matches played at home, Miami will definitely look to defend its home court and end the series early.
Game 3 tips off on Sunday.
