Miami Heat Stats Class: Improving at defending the paint

Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat blocks a shot by Jerami Grant #9 of the Detroit Pistons (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat blocks a shot by Jerami Grant #9 of the Detroit Pistons (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
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Miami Heat
Joel Embiid #21 of the Philadelphia 76ers is defended by Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

The Miami Heat have a few centers already under contract for next season. If they can improve their ability to protect the paint individually, that would help the team as a whole in that area.

This is the clear-cut, most obvious way that the Miami Heat can improve their shot-blocking next season. Both Bam Adebayo and Precious Achiuwa are still under contract for next year, meaning as of now they will be on the team.

Option #1: Self-improvement

Adebayo has improved in every year thus far of his NBA career. If he can learn to position himself even better in the post, there’s no reason he can’t average up around two blocks per game.

His extreme athleticism and game knowledge on the defensive end of the floor already put him at an advantage. He just has to perfect the craft.

As for Achiuwa, last year was only his first season in the NBA. He only played 12.1 minutes per game, where he averaged 0.5 blocks.

At only 6-8, he’s definitely on the shorter side. However, Adebayo is also considered undersized for a center, so if he can take Achiuwa under his wing the Miami Heat could see real improvement from him in his sophomore season.

They also signed Omer Yurtseven at the end of last season. Yurtseven is a 7-0 center who played for the Thunder’s G-League team last year.

He played 14 games and averaged 1.4 blocks in 21.1 minutes per game. At his height, he would be the tallest center on the roster, and could hopefully help improve their ability to protect the paint.