Bam Adebayo may be primed for a return against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night, but it doesn't absolve the Miami Heat from the crucial reality check they've gotten over the last couple of weeks. And it's that if they are serious about making a genuine playoff run, they need to beef up their frontcourt.
Miami may have survived in the six games without Bam, under the assumption that he is set to return tonight, but they did learn a valuable lesson about their team. The Heat can feel good about themselves for going 4-2 without Bam, but they were dominated on the boards without him in the lineup.
And it was especially alarming
The Heat weren't a great rebounding team with Bam at the start of the season, but they were surviving. They were in the top half of the league in both overall rebounding and defensive rebounding. They were already a bad offensive rebounding team, but they still, they still managed to get by.
In the six games without Bam, though, the Heat fell two whole spots in rebounds per game. More specifically, they were outrebounded in every game in Bam's absence. Overall, in the last six games, they are a combined minus-52 in rebounding against their opponents.
The Heat must address this alarming issue
This won't cut it. If this is the new norm for the Heat, their lack of size is eventually going to catch up with them, especially considering that we're still under 20 games played this season.
And, unfortunately, I can't imagine how the simple return of Bam is going to solve all their issues. This was a concern before Bam's injury, and will still be one when he returns.
That's why the Heat desperately needs to add another rotation big to the equation. How and when they will do that remains to be seen, but recent reporting does seem to indicate that December 15 is a date to watch.
But if the Heat are going to have any sustainability in the Eastern Conference, especially when it comes to the impending playoff race, they're going to need more depth in the frontcourt.
If nothing else, that's certainly one thing that the Heat learned during Bam's absence.
The good news is that it appears Bam is on the precipice of a return to the Heat's lineup. But the Heat can't get too caught up in that and forget just how much this team needs to beef up its big man rotation.