Heat vs Celtics: Bam Adebayo Jabs Back At Kristaps Porziņģis’ “I Don’t Care About Him” Remark

“I don’t care about him,” Kristaps Porzingis claimed on his matchup with Bam Adebayo after the blowout Game 1 victory. Porzingis didn’t mean to take Adebayo’s monumental impact away from him. His comments were solely based on his focus on winning alongside his team. However, he ended his response by citing, “This is not one-on-one, me against Bam. This is Celtics vs. Heat,” highlighting his leaning on the historic rivalry, even in his first year with the Boston Celtics.

With that, as the Miami Heat clinched Game 2 on the road, Adebayo resorted to a laid-back approach while resonating with a similar team-oriented stance as KP. When asked about Porzingis’ comments, Bam said with a smile, “Nah, I’m not on social media so I don’t hear that noise. It is what it is. He can say what he wants.” With that, Bam added, “We just gon go out there between those lines, handle business.”

Till now, Heat are playing without two key starters, Terry Rozier and Jimmy Butler. Rozier is sidelined since April 7 due to neck spasms. Due to the nature of his injury, Heat play with no timeline on his return, hoping that a day-to-day evaluation leans their way soon. On the other hand, Butler suffered a MCL sprain in the Heat’s play-in game against the 76ers. However, he decided to play through the pain, possibly worsening the overall impact of the injury. Currently, he is declared out of the series at hand.

With that, Bam Adebayo’s comment, even though dismissive of the matchup with the Unicorn, sits right within the Heat’s plans. As for the fans, fiery instances between the two will automatically develop as long as Adebayo sticks to the longer script – winning the war, not the battle.

Bam Adebayo vs Kristaps Porzingis can be a masterclass

Despite 7 shared years in the league, Adebayo and Kristaps Porzingis have only faced off 9 times in their careers. Through those, Bam Adebayo averages 18.2 points and 9.1 rebounds while KP averages 18.3 points and 8.0 rebounds. However, despite the almost even productions, the numbers don’t do justice what they can add to the ongoing series.

Bam is the definition of modern day center (defensively) while Porzingis radiates the same on offense. Bam, due to his strength and wing like footwork, can guard all positions; something several centers and power forwards struggle to. This enables him to either fall back on the screen or cut up near the three-point line.

Interestingly, it is something that is needed when trying to guard Porzingis. KP can rain it from the long-range; be it a post-up or off-the-dribble and can effectively put bigger players in the blender near the basket; thanks to his footwork. Moreover, he has the skillset to take over the game singlehandedly, something Adebayo lacks.

However, when the roles are reversed, Adebayo can equally affect the game inside the paint. With his strength and quickness as the cushioning, he can torch big-men and double teams inside the paint. Moreover, due to the lack of 3-point shot (like a traditional big-man), Kristaps always has a breathing room against Bam. With that, he can time his contests better on Adebayo’s mid-range jump shots and limit his options of the offense.