Was Bam's Questionable Foul a Flop or Offensive Foul on Smart?

Adebayo was called for a borderline foul in the first quarter.

The Heat took a 2–1 series lead over the Celtics on Saturday night, in part thanks to Bam Adebayo’s 31 points and 10 rebounds. However, one of Adebayo’s most talked about plays actually went against him.

Early in the game, Adebayo was guarding Marcus Smart, and the Celtics guard went up for a shot and drew a foul on the Heat center. However, the play isn’t a clear-cut defensive foul.

This was called a foul on Bam Adebayo. pic.twitter.com/r576Hq1jnH

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 22, 2022

On the one hand, Adebayo did technically interfere with Smart’s shooting motion, even if his face is what made contact. On the other hand, Smart appeared to initiate the contact, not the other way around.

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It is possible that Adebayo was exaggerating contact to draw the foul, even if it wasn’t as obvious as P.J. Tucker’s flop later in the game.

Despite the foul, Adebayo never spent any time during the game in foul trouble, as he only received three fouls on the night. 

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