Spoelstra, Adebayo react to GM survey snub. And Heat injury updates on Jovic, Jaquez and Martin
When a member of the Miami Heat’s media relations team informed Erik Spoelstra on Tuesday that he was voted the best head coach in the NBA, best manager/motivator of people, the head coach who makes the best in-game adjustments and head coach with the best defensive schemes in this year’s NBA preseason survey of general managers, Spoelstra responded with a question.
“Where was Bam [Adebayo] on the defensive surveys?” Spoelstra asked.
Adebayo, who has made the NBA’s All-Defensive Second Team in each of the past four seasons, received the third-most votes for the most versatile defender in the NBA behind only Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo and Golden State’s Draymond Green. But the Heat’s two-time All-Star center did not receive a vote for the best defensive player in the NBA.
The top vote-getters for the best defensive player in the NBA category were Antetokounmpo (40 percent), Boston’s Jrue Holiday (13 percent), Green (10 percent), Memphis’ Marcus Smart (10 percent), Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr. (7 percent) and Los Angeles’ Kawhi Leonard (7 percent).
General managers were not permitted to vote for their own team or personnel on the preseason survey, so the Heat could not give Adebayo a vote in this category.
“That one is just unbelievable to me,” Spoelstra said on Tuesday. “I think Bam is the best defensive player in the league, and I just can’t understand why he’s not recognized for how impactful he is on that end of the court. So he’s just going to have to prove it again and just do it this year until everybody notices.
“I think [Defensive Player of the Year is] a good award to go for. A lot of awards, I think potentially can get in the way of winning. I think that one is a great one and I don’t think he’s going to take himself out of anything. I think he just has to be who he is, do what he does and just be that dynamic force on that end of the court. Then I think he’s going to get recognized for that and hopefully we’ll have a great defense this year and he leads us on that end of the court.”
When approached about that topic in the Heat’s locker room following Tuesday’s preseason opener, Adebayo brushed off the perceived snub on the survey of general managers.
“They’re just mad because I be locking up their best player. That’s all that is,” Adebayo said as he walked out of the locker room.
Adebayo, 26, has made it known he wants to win the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year Award during his career. He finished fifth in the voting for the award last season, fourth in the voting in 2021-22, fourth in the voting in 2020-21, fifth in the voting in 2019-20, and did not receive a vote for the honor in the first two seasons of his NBA career.
“I think it’s still a shot blocking and/or steals award,” Spoelstra said of why he believes Adebayo doesn’t get the defensive praise he deserves. “And that’s what’s unfortunate because he’s not leading the league in blocks. He is a great paint protector. He just does it in a different way and his versatility is almost unparalleled. I think he and Draymond Green are the most versatile defenders that can do the most things. Guard bigs, guard smalls, be super disruptive on any other matchup, but also play any coverage. He does all the coverages that you can think of and he does it at the highest level.
“I don’t know what other metric we have to come up with to at least get him in that conversation. I guess that’s all I’m saying. He should just be recognized in that conversation. It should be 1a, 1b, whoever. At that point, I get it. But if he’s not even on the list, that boggles my mind.”
INJURY UPDATE
Heat forward Nikola Jovic was not at practice Wednesday, as he instead was having his right knee checked by a doctor after suffering an injury in the first half of Tuesday’s preseason win over the Charlotte Hornets. The Heat is hopeful the knee injury is minor.
“He did feel better today,” Spoelstra said of Jovic after Wednesday’s practice. “We’re just going to get it checked out to do our due diligence. But we’ll see how he feels once we get the scans and everything.”
Also, Heat rookie wing Jaime Jaquez Jr. strained his left groin in Wednesday’s practice.
“We’ll find out,” Spoelstra said Wednesday when asked about the team’s concern level over Jaquez’s injury. “He’s in great shape, so we’ll just have to see how he feels.”
There was some positive Heat injury news, though, as Spoelstra said wing Caleb Martin “was doing more” in Wednesday’s practice after missing Tuesday’s preseason opener with left knee tendinosis.
Spoelstra added that not all 21 players will travel to San Antonio for Friday’s preseason matchup against the Spurs.
Heat star Jimmy Butler, who did not play in the preseason opener Tuesday, said he’s undecided on how much he’ll play in the remaining four exhibition games.
