Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo took responsibility for Miami’s Game 2 loss to the New York Knicks on Tuesday night.
The Heat fought hard against the Knicks, especially since the team was down both Tyler Herro and Jimmy Butler due to injury, but ultimately the Heat came up short, losing 111-105.
It’s admirable to see Adebayo pin the loss on himself, and there certainly is one play on defense he’d probably like to have back.
With the Knicks trailing by six points in the fourth quarter, Adebayo picked up a foul trying to run through an Isaiah Hartenstein screen that led to a four-point play for the Knicks.
Jalen Brunson drilled a corner 3-pointer and Hartenstein was sent to the line, where he made the free throw and instantly cut the Miami lead to just two points.
After leading 93-87, the Heat were outscored 24-12 to finish the game.
It’s uncharacteristic to see Adebayo make a big defensive mistake, but the Heat still have to feel good about where they are in the series.
Not only did Miami steal a game in New York, but the team was still able to hang tight with the Knicks despite Butler being out with an ankle injury. In fact, the Heat had the lead at the half and at the end of the third quarter in Game 2.
Adebayo finished Game 2 with 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting, eight rebounds, six assists and one block. While he didn’t put up big scoring numbers, he was still efficient from the field.
He played a solid game, and he didn’t need to force shots with Gabe Vincent (21 points), Caleb Martin (22 points) and Max Strus (17 points) all playing well on Tuesday.
The Heat and Knicks have three days off before they resume their series in Miami on Saturday for Game 3.
Miami has to be hoping that Butler will be able to play in that game, which should provide a major lift to the team on both ends of the floor.
The Heat and Knicks played twice in Miami in the regular season, splitting those two games. New York’s lone win came on a buzzer-beater by Julius Randle on March 3.