Getty Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat reacts to a call against the Boston Celtics during the fourth quarter in Game Five of the 2022 NBA Playoffs Eastern Conference Finals
The 2022-23 NBA regular season is quickly approaching, with the Miami Heat set to take on the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night. The Heat didn’t have the offseason they expected after failing to make any significant addition. Miami was known to be shopping for a star to team up with Jimmy Butler this offseason, but they were only able to make significant additions through the draft.
The Heat drafted Nikola Jovic in the first round of the 2022 NBA Draft, and the 6-foot-11 player was considered someone that can do it all for the Heat. It was known he could take time to develop, but the Heat got a solid young player late in the first round. So far this preseason, Jovic has impressed. In five preaseason games, he has averaged nearly 10 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 3 assists per game.
Bam Adebayo on Heat Rookie Nikola Jovic
Jovic’s play has been noticed by those within the Heat organization, including head coach Erik Spoelstra, Jimmy Butler has had good things to say, Udonis Haslem, and now fellow Heat big man Bam Adebayo have all shared strong words about what the rookie brings to this Heat squad.
“Man, the thing I like about young fella, he’s a hooper,” Adebayo told the Sun Sentinel’s Ira Winderman. “He’s one of those guys, he figures it out as he goes. And that’s the thing I’ve learned about him so far. Like throwing him in the first unit, he looked like he was comfortable with us. He knows exactly where to go, figuring it out in the flow, keeping the spacing. He’s not running around mindless. The kid can hoop.”
Jovic gives the Heat some added versatility with his ability to play multiple positions. While he isn’t expected to get heavy minutes early on, his preseason play is encouraging for the future in how the 19-year-old can insert himself in the Heat rotation. One of the places he has surprised the organization was his ability to play center.
Erik Spoelstra on Nikola Jovic Impressing at Center
After his impressive preseason play, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra praised the Heat rookie and one of the things that stood out in his play was how he manned the center position for Miami.
“And that’s been at the five [center] and I really just kind of did it initially to just see what happens, and let’s just give him those minutes. He’s responded well. He’s had some really good moments. He’s had some moments where he’s gotten beaten up a little bit [and] he’s had some moments where he’s made some mistakes.
“But he’s very coachable, he takes responsibility and he really works at trying to correct things that didn’t go well. And I think that also is a skill, when you can see something and not make the same mistake over and over and over,” Spoelstra told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.
One place that Jovic has surprised is rebounding. He had 12 in their recent postseason game, and this was a skill the Heat were aware of when they drafted him.
“He rebounded pretty well over there [in Serbia],” Spoelstra said. “You just don’t know analytically if that translates to the NBA. So I was just kind of hoping to see that. Initially, I didn’t even envision playing him as a five. We’ve been doing that more so at the five. We’ve been doing that more for the development and to get him out there.”