Heat’s Bam Adebayo returns for Game 4 vs. Lakers. Goran Dragic still out
After playing without starters Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic in Games 2 and 3 of the NBA Finals, the Miami Heat received some positive news before the start of Game 4.
Adebayo is available for Tuesday’s contest against the Los Angeles Lakers after missing the previous two games with a strained neck.
Dragic hoped to play Tuesday and warmed up in an attempt to make his return in Game 4, but he was ruled out about an hour before tip-off as he continues to recover from a torn plantar fascia in his left foot.
While testing his injured foot before Tuesday’s game, pregame video showed Dragic had trouble moving laterally when trying to defend Heat assistant coach Chris Quinn. Dragic then walked slowly to the bench after coming to the realization it would not be possible to play in Game 4.
“I’m dealing with a lot of pain, so that’s the main concern,” Dragic said Monday. “I don’t want to be a liability there on the floor for my team. I want to be the best that I can be. It’s just, it is what it is.
“They told me that it can change day-to-day. It’s just a matter of comfort, and if I can push off my leg. I do have to admit, it’s better than it was. The injury happened four days ago. We’ll just see how it’s going to react in the near future, and hopefully I will be back.”
Adebayo, who played in his first NBA All-Star Game this season, enters Game 4 averaging 17.8 points on 55.7 percent shooting, 10.9 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.1 steals in the playoffs. He’s tied with Dragic with a team-best plus/minus of plus-77 this postseason.
Adebayo, 23, finished Game 1 of the Finals with eight points on 2-of-8 shooting, four rebounds and zero assists in 21 minutes before leaving the game with his neck injury in the third quarter.
Dragic, 34, did not play in the second half of Game 1 because of the foot injury. He recorded six points on 3-of-8 shooting and three assists in 15 first-half minutes, as the injury looked to occur in the second quarter when Dragic stepped on Lakers guard Rajon Rondo’s foot.
Dragic, who will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, has been one of the Heat’s most reliable and efficient offensive options this postseason. He entered the Finals averaging a team-high 20.9 points on 45.2 percent shooting, to go with 4.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists during the playoff run.
Tuesday marked the 17th game Dragic has missed this season because of various injuries, but just the third one he has been unavailable for this postseason.
The next opportunity for Dragic to return will be in Game 5 on Friday (9 p.m., ABC).
“It’s not the easiest thing right now for me to sit down on the sideline and watch my team,” Dragic said Monday, “how they are battling, how they are playing well, and of course I want to be out there. But yeah, I don’t know. Most of the times I ask myself, I ask the guy above us why it has to happen right now. It’s tough.”
This story was originally published October 6, 2020 at 5:01 PM.
