Miami Heat's Bam Adebayo Taking Big Picture Approach To Injuries

Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo hoping to be healthy as possible for the NBA playoffs

There was a time Miami Heat center Bam Adebayo thought playing all 82 games was one of the NBA's biggest accomplishments.

In an era of maintenance and load management, it's rare for a player to appear in every game. Being on the court often as possible was a requirement for Adebayo, but now it appears he is taking a new approach. 

He wants to play but only when he's fully healthy. In a recent interview with ESPN, Adebayo spoke of the bigger picture. His goal is being ready when it counts during the postseason. 

He's even letting others choose when he plays or not. 

"Coach [Erik Spoelstra] kinda took it out of my hands," Adebayo said. "He was like 'You've got to sit'," Adebayo said. "Throughout my whole career, I've tried to play through stuff, take your mind off of it and once you get into competition you seem to forget about it."

Adebayo missed extended time earlier this season because of a lingering hip strain. The Heat hope it's fully healed so he's ready for the playoffs. Last year Adebayo dealt with shoulder and hamstring that hampered him some during the Heat's historic run to the NBA Finals. 

This isn't Adebayo saying he's willing to sit more games but rather him taking a more careful approach to injuries. 

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Shandel Richardson covers the Miami Heat for Inside The Heat, a Fan Nation channel for Sports Illustrated. He has covered the NBA since 2010.

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