Has Kevin Love’s Move to the Miami Heat Impacted Bam Adebayo?

When the Miami Heat traded for veteran forward Kevin Love, there was hope it would positively impact center Bam Adebayo.

Love’s size and rebounding add another big body in the frontcourt but Adebayo has struggled since the arrival.

Adebayo’s efficient scoring and rebounding earned a second NBA All-Star selection. He was averaging a double-double before the break but is at 17.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists since on a respectful 52.4 percent. That number drops to 49.6 percent if his 30-point game against the Atlanta Hawks is excluded.

Adebayo only has two 20-point games the second half of the season. You can look at it from two ways. Adebayo is scoring less because Jimmy Butler is producing at a higher rate. Or Butler is being forced to do too much because of Adebayo's decline. A look at the Heat's record shows it's probably the latter.

Love being the Heat’s leading rebounder the past month has taken away some of Adebayo's opportunities. He only had one rebound against the Cleveland Cavaliers last Wednesday.

The Heat still have a few weeks to figure out Adebayo's new role. If it doesn't happen soon, you might as well pencil them in for the play-in tournament.

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Jayden Armant is a contributor to Inside the Heat. He is a student at Howard University. He can be reached at jayden.armant@bison.howard.edu or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.