NBA names awards finalists. Here’s who made it from the Miami Heat
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A blowout win for the Miami Heat
The Miami Heat beat the Atlanta Hawks 115-91 in Game 1 of the NBA Playoffs on Sunday at FTX Arena.
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Miami Heat smothers Hawks, Trae Young to take 1-0 lead in first round playoff series
Robinson’s candid admission and big Game 1. And 12 notes, thoughts from Heat’s blowout win
NBA names awards finalists. Here’s who made it from the Miami Heat
Takeaways from Heat’s Game 1 win over Hawks behind familiar formula of defense and threes
The NBA named finalists for six major awards on Sunday evening, and the Heat remains in the running for two of them.
As expected, Tyler Herro was named a finalist for the Sixth Man of the Year award, along with Phoenix’s Cam Johnson and Cleveland’s Kevin Love. Herro is considered the front-runner. “He’s the closest you can get to a lock” for any award, TNT’s Charles Barkley said.
Meanwhile, the Heat’s Erik Spoelstra is a finalist for coach of the year, along with Memphis’ Taylor Jenkins and Phoenix’s Monty Williams. Spoelstra led the Heat to the NBA’s third-best record despite numerous injuries. WIlliams’ Suns had the best record.
But Heat center Bam Adebayo was not a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year, an award he said he believes he deserved to win this season. The finalists: Utah’s Rudy Gobert, Phoenix’s Mikal Bridges and Boston’s Marcus Smart.
Consider that the Heat allowed 104.9 points per 100 possessions with Adebayo on the court, which was better than any single NBA team. That compared with 109.1 for the Heat without Adebayo on the court. He switched onto different players more than any other NBA player, according to the league’s tracking metrics.
What’s more, Adebayo held players he’s defending to 42.8 percent, compared with the 47.8 percent those players shot overall.
The media deadline to submit ballots was Monday.
Herro could have made a case for Most Improved Player, but he wasn’t a finalist. Cleveland’s Darius Garland, Memphis’ Ja Morant and San Antonio’s Dejounte Murray are the finalists for that award.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid and Denver’s Nikola Jovic are finalists for MVP. Toronto’s Scottie Barnes, Detroit’s Cade Cunningham and Cleveland’s Evan Mobley are finalists for Rookie of the Year.
As for Herro, the resume is very strong for the Sixth Man award:
▪ His 20.8 scoring average was by far the highest among NBA reserves. Utah’s Jordan Clarkson was second at 15.9.
▪ His eight 30-point games off the bench tied for the third-most by a reserve in NBA history. Only Ricky Pierce (17) and Lou Williams (11) had more in a single season.
His 20 games of 25 points or more in a single season were fourth-most in NBA history, behind two seasons by Pierce and one by Thurl Bailey.
▪ Herro’s 1162 points off the bench (in 56 just games) were the most off the bench by a Heat player in a single season, topping Dwyane Wade’s 1028 in 2018-19.
THIS AND THAT
▪ Victor Oladipo’s 40 point game against a bad Orlando team sitting multiple starters did not cause Spoelstra to change a bench rotation that has been successful. Oladipo did not play Sunday. Gabe Vincent played 25 minutes off the bench Sunday and had eight points, seven assists and just one turnover.
“He’s come a long way from wearing that knee brace,” point guard Kyle Lowry said of Vincent. “Getting significant minutes is big. He’s special for us because he can guard, can shoot the ball, has unlimited energy.”
▪ Over the past decade, the Heat has won 13 of the 15 series in which it won Game 1.
▪ The Heat’s seven three-pointers in the second quarter tied a franchise playoff record for most three-pointers in any quarter. And the Heat’s 18 first-half assists were its most ever in the first half of a playoff game.
▪ Atlanta’s John Collins - dealing with multiple injuries - played his first game since March 11 and had 10 points in 21 minutes. “I was hesitant putting him out there,” Hawks coach Nate McMillan said. “I thought he was OK.”
▪ PJ Tucker’s 16 points were his fifth most in 74 career playoff games.
▪ Adebayo shot 1 for 5 from the field, which ended a streak in which he had made at least half of his shots in every game for 16 consecutive games, the fifth-longest streak in franchise history. Shaquille O’Neal owns the Heat record with 30 games in a row shooting 50 percent or better.
▪ Tyler Herro didn’t hit a three-pointer for the first time in 26 career playoff games. His streak of 25-consecutive-games-with-a-three -- to start a playoff career -- is third all time, behind Steph Curry (122 in a row and ongoing) and Tim Hardaway (29).
Here’s my 12-pack of notes, thoughts and more from Game 1, including Duncan Robinson’s recent admission and big game today.
This story was originally published April 17, 2022 at 6:19 PM.