What Bam Adebayo Believes is Crucial for Stopping Celtics in Game 2
Down 0-1 in his first-round best-of-7 series, why Bam Adebayo is looking forward to the Heat's adjustments in Game 2
BOSTON — Jayson Tatum notched the first playoff triple-double of his career, the Celtics made a franchise-record 22 threes and held a 34-point lead in a game in which the Miami Heat, playing without their top scorer in Jimmy Butler, never led once.
But the Heat didn’t go down without a fight, throwing out a few haymakers that threatened their blowout deficit to single digits and disrupted the Celtics’ rhythm. At times, Boston dominated; hence, when the Celtics leaped out to a 14-0 lead out of the gate — head coach Joe Mazzulla couldn’t have asked for a better start to his first-round, best-of-7 series.
However, don’t let Game 1’s 114-94 final score fool you. Boston wasn’t always ahead by a mile. Jaime Jaquez Jr., starting in place of Butler, made the first bucket of the second quarter, making it a one-possession game (26-23). Then, Sam Hauser sunk in three consecutive threes, leading a 9-2 Celtics run and potentially singlehandedly stopping the Heat from their first lead.
Miami’s second biggest threat of overcoming a blowout deficit came in the final frame. At the start of the fourth quarter, Delon Wright did his best second-quarter Hauser impression, draining three straight from behind the arc to start the fourth before an 18-4 Heat run forced Mazzulla to reinsert his starters.
However, if you ask Heat center Bam Adebayo, it isn’t the way Miami finished the game that impacted the final score most, but rather the beginning in how Boston set the tone. That one critical adjustment in Game 2 on Wednesday could be the difference between trailing 0-2 in their first-round, best-of-7 and heading back to Miami with the series tied.
“I feel like the start of the game was really the icing for them,” Adebayo said after the loss. “They got out to a large lead, and they kind of held onto that throughout the game. If we don’t get off to a start like that, we fall back into this game. So, I feel like it’s a different result if we don’t let them get off to a hot start.”
Adebayo finished with a game-high 24 points, Jaquez Jr. added 16 points, and Wright’s 17 points, including a perfect 5-for-5 from deep, led Miami’s bench.
“I feel like it’s a different ball game if they don’t get off to a hot start in the beginning,” Adebayo said. “We went on a run in the fourth, but if that start doesn’t happen, and it’s our ball or their ball in the fourth, and we get those 50/50 balls, it’s a different ball game.”
Tatum’s 23 points, 10 rebounds, and ten assists, along with the Celtics’ whopping 22-of-49 (44.9%) from 3 — which ties a franchise playoff record — kept the Heat at bay. All eight of the Celtics’ rotation players made a three, and seven of them hit at least two, including Derrick White (4-for-8), Kristaps Porzingis (4-for-8), and Jaylen Brown (3-for-5).
“It’s clear Boston controlled this game from the tip. On the very first possession, they had an offensive rebound, a three, and from there, they controlled it. You have to give them credit,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said after the loss. “They won the big-muscle areas, definitely won the 3-point line, and the majority of the areas in between, including defensively. They were up and into us, getting us out of our normal flow/rhythm. So, we have to do a much better job by Wednesday.”
While many believe the daunting task of facing the Celtics without Butler or Terry Rozier, who’s considered day-to-day, is too steep of a challenge for Miami, Adebayo isn’t focusing on one’s expectations. As a returning Eastern Conference champions member, he knows the task at hand won’t be easy but is planning on making the best of it anyway.
“At the end of the day, you got to play the game. You got to go out there and compete. You can’t say somebody’s going to win over somebody; we haven’t played the game yet,” Adebayo said. “From that standpoint, we know we’re going into this, the game, with people doubting us, people not believing in us. But, the guys in that locker room believe, and as long the guys in the locker room believe, and the coaching staff believe, we always have a chance.”