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Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo is developing something of a reputation for breaking the hearts of Boston Celtics fans. His game-saving block on Celtics star Jayson Tatum during Game 1 of the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals set a tone for the series. The No. 5 Heat went on to upset the third-seeded Cs four games to two and punch their ticket to the NBA Finals.
On Friday, he may have given fans in the Massachusetts Bay another reason to bristle.
Beginning on Sunday afternoon, Adebayo’s Heat will reacquaint themselves with Boston as the teams play a back-to-back set at Boston Garden.
However, with the ECF rematch looming — and the neck-and-neck teams each looking to avoid a play-in scenario — the All-Star big man apparently has something other than playing the Celtics on his mind.
Specifically, he’s worried about a certain upcoming holiday.
His comments on the matter could be construed as an attempt to throw shade. Either way, they’re sure to keep him in his mother’s good graces.
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Adebayo Has Mother’s Day on His Mind, Not the Celtics
Following Miami’s 121-112 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday, Adebayo was asked about the Celtics games. The reporter who posed the question was curious as to whether the big man had rushed to his phone after the game to check up on Boston, which currently sits just a half-game behind Miami in the standings.
In responding, he made it clear that the Celtics weren’t really his concern.
“When I grab my phone, I text my mom,” he said, via Heat Nation. “So therefore, Boston was not my worry. You know Mother’s Day is coming up. Gotta stay on the nice list.”
This was his only commentary on the showdown with the Celtics:
“Everybody’s talking about it. Like, our staff told us…” he said, before being interrupted. At that point, he concurred with an off-camera remark about trying to get home and his media availability came to an abrupt end.
Clearly, Adebayo isn’t sweating the Cs.
Miami Heating Up Ahead of Crucial Series
Like the Celtics, the Heat have contended with an early-season COVID-19 outbreak and the injury bug’s continuous bite in 2020-21. And those issues have similarly impacted the club in the standings.
Unlike Boston, though, the Heat are trending in the right direction. Miami has gone 8-3 over its last 11 games. That stretch began with a 109-107 win over the East’s current No. 2 squad, the Brooklyn Nets.
Second-year point guard Kendrick Nunn has played particularly well during the recent upswing. Playing in 10 of the 11 contests, Nunn has averaged 18.4 points per game while shooting 51.4% from the field and 42.7% from three-point range (on 7.5 attempts per game).
Although both games will be played in Boston, the Heat have been scorching the nets as the road team recently. Over the aforementioned stretch, Miami has put up 122.6 points per 100 possessions on the road.
On January 6, the Celtics beat the Heat by two points in Miami, so they just need to split the back-to-back set to capture the tiebreaker. Given the teams’ proximity in the standings, though, it would be in Boston’s best interest to reverse the Heat’s recent road trend.
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