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Miami Heat All-Star center Bam Adebayo plans to return for Game 4 of the NBA Finals. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Tuesday. Adebayo has missed the last two games with a neck injury sustained in Game 1, as has Goran Dragic, who Shams Charania of The Athletic reports will also attempt to return to the court for Game 4:
Miami Heat guard Goran Dragic will warm up before Game 4 of the NBA Finals tonight to try to play @AthleticNBA @Stadium. If Dragic can tolerate the pain with the torn plantar fascia in his foot, he will play.
– Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 6, 2020
The Los Angeles Lakers currently lead the series 2-1.
Dragic’s injury is more serious, so it is unclear what exactly his return would mean, or if he will be able to do so. But either way, adding a player of Adebayo’s caliber to the mix obviously has its positives, at least for the Heat. However, it may not be as simple as leaving it on the ground. Adebayo has not played in almost a week and his status was not updated until Monday afternoon. That likely means he will play despite the injury, rather than coming back from one.
If Adebayo is limping in Game 4, it’s hard to imagine he will have more of an impact than in Game 1, when he posted a defensive rating of 130.2. The Heat’s defensive rating improved 14.5 points (per 100 possessions) with Adebayo on the bench.
Anthony Davis might be just an inch taller than Adebayo, but Davis looked huge when he faced him in Game 1. With Davis’ performance in Game 3, expect him to go to Adebayo early and often, especially if it’s clear that Adebayo is not You don’t move well.
Adebayo’s return could also limit the space that allowed the Heat to dominate Game 3 offensively. Adebayo is many things, but a shooter is not one of them, and the lack of space with Adebayo in the lineup could make Miami easier to defend.
That’s not to say that the Heat will be substantially worse off with Adebayo on the court, and if they are, Erik Spoelstra has shown he’s smart enough to turn to his other players. However, to say that the Heat are definitely going to be better because Adebayo will return to the lineup is likely inaccurate in these specific circumstances. They may be, but they also may not. We’ll take a look when the Lakers and Heat kick off at 6 p.m. PT on ABC.
For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast at iTunes, Spotify, Stapler or Google podcasts. You can follow this author on Twitter at @RadRivas.
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