2 Heat players whose stock is falling , 1 whose stock is finally rising
With the Miami Heat's brutal month of January over, we take a look at whose stock is rising and whose is falling.
By Max Marshall
The Miami Heat's seven-game losing streak has put them closer to the play-in tournament than the top of the Eastern Conference. Wednesday's win again the Sacramento Kings helped to stem the spiral, but Miami needs to go on a run and get some of their best players to play more consistent ball. Here's whose stock was up and down in the month of January, when the Heat went 6-10.
📉 Stock down : Bam Adebayo
Bam Adebayo has been struggling to find his mid-range jumper and touch around the rim during this stretch. Adebayo, who is usually solid around the rim, has been missing shots he would usually make. Bunnies at the basket, touch shots from the restrictes area, etc. Same with his mid-range jumper. During the losing streak, his shot attempts have been down. He went 6 of 10 against the New York Knicks and 3 of 9 against the Phoenix Suns. He started 0 for 4 against the Kings before finishing the game 8 for 14. Perhaps a sign of regaining touch.
In the 10 games before Wednesday night, Adebayo averaged 16.9 points,11.0 rebounds and 4.9 assists. These aren’t abhorent numbers but, as the captain of the team, Adebayo needs to be better.
Defensively, Miami has been lazy and going through the motions. Not putting everything on Adebayo, but as the team caption, something has to change. Adebayo has been dealing with a hip injury, so at times, it looks like he doesn’t have any lift. That wasn't the case on Wednesday when he soared for an alley-oop dunk from Tyler Herro.
More of that. But Adebayo must also regain the touch on his foul-line jumper. Up until Jan. 1, Adebayo was making 41.4% of his mid-range shots. Since the turn of the calendar, that's down to 15.2%. Yikes.