JJ Redick On The Miami Heat Reaching NBA Finals: "It's A Definite Possibility"
The Miami Heat are one of the NBA's biggest mysteries as the playoffs grow closer.
A variety of injuries, lineup changes, and trades have given the Heat a short amount of time to display their true potential. They have proven themselves in the postseason, reaching the NBA Finals twice since 2020.
Retired NBA sharpshooter and analyst JJ Redick understands that their lack of time for acclimation leaves their chances of reaching the Finals unknown.
"It’s a definite possibility. Hard to make sense of their team this year as they’ve had no lineup continuity," Redick shared on X.
The former NBA guard's comment came following a statement on his podcast where he discussed that the Heat are "at their best" when Adebayo's focus is away from scoring.
"Where I think the Heat are at their best is when Bam is getting rebounds, breaking out, creating pace, and he's functioning more as a hub than as a scorer. We saw last year against Denver [Nuggets]," Redick said on his podcast 'The Old Man & The Three'. "Look, they were very willing to let Bam take 25 mid-range shots and make 12 or 13 of them, and have 26 or 27 points. They were very willing to let him do that."
Adebayo averaged 21.8 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in the Finals against the Nuggets. This season, he is averaging 4.1 assists because he is improving his chemistry in the pick-and-roll with Herro.
"To me, when he's functioning as a hub, he's getting Tyler Herro threes, he's getting Duncan Robinson threes, he's getting Jimmy [Butler] back cuts, he's freeing Caleb Martin," Redick said. "That, to me, is more valuable to the Miami Heat than Bam going and scoring 21 points every night. It's him as the hub."
Anthony Pasciolla works as a contributing writer to Inside the Heat.
He can be reached at ampasciolla@gmail.com or follow him on Instagram @anthony.pasciolla.
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