MIAMI — A few hours after the Miami Heat opened their postseason run with a dominant 115-91 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday, the NBA announced the finalists for the 2021-22 regular season awards.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was recognized as one of the top three nominees for Coach of the Year. Tyler Herro was one of the top three contenders for sixth man of the year. However, the Defensive Player of the Year pool did not include Miami big man Bam Adebayo.
1 relatives
“I’m really amazed that Bam isn’t a finalist,” Spoelstra said after Monday’s practice session. “I don’t know what people see. And he’s played enough games, so I don’t want that as an excuse either.”
Adebayo played in 56 games for the Heat, who boasted the fourth-best defensive rating in the league. He was beaten by the Boston Celtics’ Marcus Smart, who played 71 games for defense with the No. 1; Mikal Bridges of the Phoenix Suns, who played 82 games for the No. 3 defense; and the Utah Jazz’s Rudy Gobert, who played 66 games for defense with the No. 10.
The great creator of The Heat believes the vote wasn’t skewed by general availability, but rather by how often the top contenders’ games have been in the national spotlight.
“Disrespectful,” Adebayo said Monday when asked about the finalists’ announcement. “I feel like I can do anything two out of three can do, plus I can’t teach height. But all three act more on TV than I do. So I would expect that. They get more TV games and they get more exposure. People like to talk more about them. Nobody wants to talk about us. So, at this point, it’s whatever.
At the start of the season, the Suns had 34 nationally televised games scheduled. The Celtics had 32, the Jazz 26 and the Heat 22.
“I think that’s why I think a lot of guys get a lot of awards,” Adebayo continued. “They’re always on TV to show off their talent and happen to have good games.”
The inclusion of Herro and Spoelstra in the awards ceremony is contradicting evidence for Adebayo’s claim. The fact that Miami went 17-9 in the games he missed also suggests that the Heat’s team defense was a major factor in Adebayo’s success there.
But Adebayo’s main bone of contention was national television programming.
“The frustrating thing is we don’t get as many TV games as they do,” he said. “That’s the only thing that’s frustrating because I feel like if I had as many TV games as they do, I wouldn’t be among the finalists and this, that, and the third.”
Spoelstra said Adebayo’s impact jumps off the screen for anyone who manages to tune in.
“Just watch one of our games,” said Spoelstra. “They have a defense system based on its toughness and versatility. And it’s not a cliché, it’s not just some thing you throw out there that he can literally guard 1 to 5. You can count on one hand in his association of 450. Lots of guys who it’s fair to say can compete in 1st through 5th place in all five positions. And he’s at the top of that list. This is unique in itself.
Herro likes it when people spend more time talking about other series, like the Celtics versus the Brooklyn Nets, rather than what’s brewing in South Beach.
“We don’t really want attention,” Herro said. “You guys can keep the attention for the other teams in the east. They have to get through here anyway, so we’ll see what happens.”
Miami, the No. 1 in the East, will look to build a 2-0 lead over the No. 8 Hawks Tuesday night.