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Heat’s Bam Adebayo gives an update on his back injury that has sidelined him for two games.
The Miami Heat have won two consecutive games for the first time in over a month, and they’ve had to do it without Bam Adebayo.
Adebayo has missed the last two games due to a back injury and was blunt to the media about his status for December 29 against the Denver Nuggets.
“We’ll see tomorrow,” Adebayo said. “I don’t know.”
Adebayo mentioned he had been battling back soreness for “a while,” and the injury reached the point where he could no longer play through it.
Adebayo was honest about whether the back injury was impacting his play on the court.
“I think it goes hand in hand,” Adebayo said. “I’m not going to make an excuse for why shots aren’t falling because I was hurt … it’s just shots not falling.”
The Miami Heat are Close to Being Fully Healthy
GettyTyler Herro is among the Heat players who could return soon.
Throughout the season, the Miami Heat have battled injury issues. Whether it’s their star players or rotation pieces, it seems as if everybody has missed some time.
However, with Pelle Larsson and Nikola Jovic recently returning to the lineup, the Heat’s injury outlook could be turning around.
Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro are now the only two active Heat players on the injury list, and both are expected to return in the near future.
Adebayo, in particular, has needed the rest to recharge and potentially get back into his usual All-Star form.
“He really needed this time,” Head Coach Erik Spoelstra told Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “He was dealing with some issues because of overcompensation.”
Before sitting the last two games, Adebayo had been struggling. He’d finished with under 10 points in two of his last four games.
The Miami Heat Gets a Boost From Young Players Without Adebayo
GettyPelle Larsson and Nikola Jovic have given the Miami Heat a boost.
Without Adebayo, the Heat have managed to win two straight games, defeating the Atlanta Hawks and the Indiana Pacers.
Two young role players, Pelle Larsson and Nikola Jovic, have stepped up majorly in Adebayo’s absence.
Larsson is averaging 18.5 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds over the last two games, while Jovic is averaging 14.5 points, 5.5 assists and 7 rebounds over the previous two games.
Jovic, in particular, has seen massive improvement after struggling to start the season. Through his first 21 games to start the season, he had seen dips in most major statistical categories.
If Jovic plays to his full potential, that could bring a major boost to this Heat team.
“We know how important he (Jovic) can be,” Erik Spoelstra said. “How different we can look when he’s playing that style of basketball.”
Larsson, on the other hand, has been a consistent contributor to the Heat when he’s healthy.
The Heat have won seven of their last eight games when Larsson is in the starting lineup and are 11-3 when Larsson plays over 26 minutes.
“Obviously, Pelle (Larsson) has missed some time,” Adebayo said. “So it’s good for him to be back in the rotation, feeling that good energy.”
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