Hoops Habit
Fansided

Miami Heat: 5 reasons to be excited for 2018-19 NBA season

By Simon Smith

MIAMI, FL - APRIL 19: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat reacts to a play against the Philadelphia 76ers in Game Three of Round One of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 19, 2018 at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL - APRIL 19: Dwyane Wade #3 of the Miami Heat reacts to a play against the Philadelphia 76ers in Game Three of Round One of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 19, 2018 at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)
(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images) /

5. Bam Adebayo‘s encore season

While he showed enormous potential in his debut season, Adebayo recently detailed how the Heat coaching staff is leaving no stone unturned in extracting the most out of his considerable upside:

"“All summer, they’ve been preaching for me to be more aggressive….I’m working on threes, ball-handling, making my teammates better and getting open shots for myself.”"

At 6’10” and possessing incredible athleticism, Adebayo has all the physical traits to be an ideal center in the modern-day NBA. While starting center Hassan Whiteside provides a considerable presence under the rim, Adebayo’s ability to switch out onto the perimeter and defend a variety of positions makes his skill-set unique.

Recently, head coach Erik Spoelstra noted Adebayo’s progress this offseason:

"“He’s going to earn his playing time and impact our team in winning by doing the things that he does at an exceptional level. That’s defend, use his athleticism, be at the rim and impact in the paint….But he’s improved his other skills and he’s a perfect example of a player committing for five months at that age and doing it every single day, three to four hours. You’ll see a different player, no question about it.”"

Last season, Adebayo played in 69 games and impressively returned a 102.1 defensive rating, the best mark on the team. Furthermore, the former Kentucky product certainly the made the most of his extended playing time, primarily when Whiteside was sidelined. In 11 games in which he played at least 30 minutes, Adebayo averaged 12.7 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 blocks per game while shooting at a 59.3 percent clip from the field.

With Whiteside back to full health and Kelly Olynyk bound to feature prominently in the frontcourt, determining Adebayo’s role and impact this season is difficult to ascertain. However, based on the optimism of both the player and the coaching staff, Adebayo could very well prove to be one of the rising stars in the league this season.

Home/Miami Heat