Bam Adebayo is considered one of the best young centers in the NBA today. Adebayo, who has been in the NBA for 5 years now, has developed quite well into a versatile big man in the league.
Plus, he has had ample playoff experience, including an appearance in the NBA Finals 2 years ago. Adebayo is the key building block for the Heat, and during this playoff run, he has dominated a once-great center.
Bam Adebayo and the Heat have been playing against the Philadelphia 76ers. Unfortunately, the 76ers lost Joel Embiid in their first-round series against the Toronto Raptors.
As a result, the 76ers have been forced to play DeAndre Jordan as their primary option at the center position. And so far, Adebayo has had his way when being guarded by Jordan, scoring 22 points against him while shooting 90% from the field, making 9 of his 10 shots against Jordan.
Stat: Bam Adebayo has 22 Points on 90% FG when defended by DeAndre Jordan this series. 😳💥
(via @ESPNStatsInfo, h/t @Sedano) pic.twitter.com/Vhla1nXGtr
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 5, 2022
Bam Adebayo is shooting 90% (9-10) from the field when being defended by DeAndre Jordan this series 😳
(h/t @Sedano ) pic.twitter.com/G2fb10PckX
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 5, 2022
DeAndre Jordan was a great center in the NBA for quite some time. Jordan was an All-Star and All-NBA player during his time in LA. But since then, he has become a rotation player due to his very poor performances over the last few years.
Jordan has been relegated to being a bit-part player now and has bounced around from team to team. But despite him being dominated by Adebayo, Doc Rivers doesn’t plan on benching him.
Doc Rivers came out after Game 1 of the 76ers-Heat series and said that he thinks DeAndre Jordan is a great player and has no plans to stop playing him. Rivers was the head coach for Jordan in LA, at the peak of his career.
So perhaps he thinks that Rivers still has something to offer. Or maybe, the fact that Joel Embiid is unavailable means that he has no choice but to play DeAndre Jordan in his place.
