On the surface, LaMelo Ball's "cheap shot" cost Bam Adebayo all but 11 minutes in the Miami Heat's Play-In Tournament game against the Charlotte Hornets, one they ultimately lost. However, digging a little deeper, Bam also lost his last chance to sway All-NBA voters (since that entire process has been delayed).
And not having the luxury to leave the voters with a lasting impression could end up costing him a spot on the All-NBA team.
There's a chance he could still make the team, and I'd imagine he very well could, but he had the opportunity to punctuate his season by carrying the Heat into the postseason. Because of the injury, he just never got that opportunity.
It's a shame because through the first 11 minutes he played in, Bam was pretty unstoppable for the Heat. In that short stint before the injury, Bam was 3-3 from the floor and had compiled six points, three rebounds, one assist, and one steal.
If Bam never goes down with the injury, there's no question that the game goes a lot differently than it played out. To say that it's truly unfortunate would be a massive understatement.
Bam Adebayo was a long bright spot for the Heat this season
If there's anyone on the Heat that deserves consideration for an end-of-the-season award, it's Bam. He's been the heart and soul of the Heat for the majority of the year and has been the lone consistently great contributor this season.
Even having to carry more of the offensive load this season, the production didn't tail off for Bam at any point down the stretch. There was a point before the mid-season mark in which Bam struggled individually, but most of that was due to lingering injuries.
Once he got healthy, Bam was a completely different player down the stretch. And that culminated in his historic, and somehow controversial, 83-point game.
There's a strong argument to be made that his performance this season will speak for itself, but there's no question that it would've been great to see him put a bow on this season with a strong showing in the Play-In Tournament and potentially into the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
Bam could still be named to an All-NBA team; if he's not, there's no question his injury (on a pretty reckless play by Ball) in the final game of the season didn't help his case any.
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