Bam Adebayo didn’t mince phrases about his efficiency in opposition to the Knicks Tuesday evening, shouldering the blame for Miami’s Sport 2 loss on the Backyard.
Sport 3 will likely be Saturday in South Florida, with a salty Miami crew and a extremely motivated Adebayo in search of payback.
And redemption.
“I simply bought to play higher,” Adebayo mentioned. “I really feel like this recreation was on me, and I misplaced it for us. I’ve bought to be higher. I performed horrible. I put this one on me.”
Not one of the Warmth did, however Adebayo fell on the proverbial sword nonetheless.
With Jimmy Butler sidelined because of a sprained ankle, Adebayo had been Miami’s finest remaining participant.
However he was simply their fourth-leading scorer Tuesday, with the Knicks incessantly working an additional defender at him earlier than he may solidify place within the paint.
He had 15 factors, eight rebounds, six assists and bought held to only two factors on a single shot within the pivotal fourth quarter.
Nonetheless, even with Butler’s standing unsure, it’s not like Miami wants enormous scoring explosions from Adebayo.
They only want the Newark-born middle to play like himself, one thing the star hasn’t carried out to date within the playoffs.
Observe The Submit’s protection of the Knicks vs. Warmth NBA playoff sequence
“He doesn’t want to attain 50 for us to win this recreation. However he has to have his fingerprints throughout this competitors,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra had mentioned of Adebayo earlier than Sport 2.
“And the best way he does it is rather much like the best way that Jimmy does it. He has to do it on each ends with huge challenges for him to have the ability to defend everyone, anyone and all of the schemes. Then offensively, all of the scoring, the facilitating, all of that. However that’s what he needs.”
If Adebayo and the Warmth bought any sleep Tuesday evening earlier than returning to Miami — and that’s questionable — their desires had been possible haunted by a single play that caught of their collective craw, his most of all.
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With Miami rolling together with a 93-87 lead almost halfway by way of the fourth quarter, Adebayo was making an attempt to shut out on a 3-point try by Jalen Brunson however bought whistled for a foul after working by way of a display set by Isaiah Hartenstein.
He knocked the Knicks middle to the courtroom, Brunson hit the three and Adebayo’s ill-timed foul turned it right into a momentum-changing four-point play with 6:42 left.
“Watching movie, we’re going to regroup and work out what went unsuitable. Effectively, I do know what went unsuitable. The turning level was me working into [Hartenstein] and Brunson hit the three,” Adebayo mentioned.
“I took off too quick, and I ought to’ve simply let [Brunson] shoot it as a substitute of making an attempt to run by way of [Hartenstein], get round him. Coach has been telling us night-in, night-out to look at the again screens on the again aspect, and I bought caught with one.”
Hartenstein’s free throw sliced Miami’s result in a deuce and sparked a 24-12 Knicks run to shut the sport and steal a cut up within the Backyard.
“Once you’re up six in that timeout, you get a cease, have a possibility to attain on the opposite finish; however impulsively, by the point you’re going to the opposite finish it’s a two-point recreation,” Spoelstra mentioned. “That was in all probability the largest swing second.”
Adebayo is averaging 16.9 factors and eight.4 rebounds on 47.6 p.c taking pictures within the postseason, down from his career-high 20.4 factors and 9.2 boards on 54 p.c within the common season.
A part of that might be because of a nagging left hamstring pressure, however regardless of the case, he’s extra excited by a bounce-back than excuses.
