Miami Heat fans let out a huge sigh of relief on Saturday.
After a long five days, Bam Adebayo is officially out of the NBA’s health and safety protocols and will be available for Sunday’s Game 1 between Miami and Atlanta.
Bam’s availability is unquestionably important for the No. 1 seeded Heat when they begin their series against the Hawks.
For starters, Adebayo is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate — his on-court presence and defensive versatility will be needed against the individual greatness of Trae Young and the collective excellence that is the Atlanta Hawks’ offense (NBA’s No. 2 offense during the regular season).
UPDATE: Bam Adebayo is no longer in health and safety protocols. He’s back 👀 pic.twitter.com/mUikp9T4ht
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) April 16, 2022
Then there’s Bam’s potential impact on the offensive end.
Already a top-8 scorer in points in the paint (13.0 per game), Adebayo has a chance to wreak havoc on Atlanta’s interior, which will likely be without Clint Capela, who exited in the first half of Friday’s play-in game vs. Cleveland with a knee injury and didn’t return. Capela’s absence on Sunday would leave the Hawks with an ultra-thin and undersized rotation at the center position, leaving the paint open and many rebounds up for grabs — so keep an eye on those Adebayo rebounding props.
One final practice for the Heat today before the start of the NBA playoffs and a welcome sight. Bam Adebayo back with his teammates. He’s out of health and safety protocols and will be available tomorrow for Game 1 vs the Hawks. pic.twitter.com/K2ShWBMc2w
— Will Manso (@WillMansoWPLG) April 16, 2022
All in all, the news comes at just the right time. We saw on Friday with the LA Clippers and Paul George just how impactful COVID-19 could be on a team’s postseason chances.
No. 1 Miami has +380 odds of winning the East at Tipico Sportsbook and its path to doing so begins with the getting through the Hawks.
[tipico]