Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Adebayo 1 vote shy
Heat center just misses NBA rookie recognition
MIAMI — There were times this past season when Erik Spoelstra said Bam Adebayo’s play made the Miami Heat firstround pick too hard to ignore, even if it meant attempting to rotate through three centers.
Spoelstra, however, did not have a vote in the NBA’s All-Rookie selection process, and the Heat therefore remain with just a single All-Rookie selection since 2009.
The NBA on Tuesday released the 10 players selected All-Rookie by a media panel, with Adebayo coming up one point shy in the weighted voting, becoming just the fourth lottery pick in the Heat’s 30 seasons not to receive such a designation.
Instead, Justise Winslow, a second-team selection in 2016, remains the lone Heat player honored since Michael Beasley was named first team All-Rookie and Mario Chalmers second team in 2009.
In the voting that awarded two points for players voted first team and one for player voted second team, Adebayo closed with 43 points, with the final All-Rookie berth on the second team taken by the Phoenix Suns’ Josh Jackson, with 44 points. Adebayo and Jackson each were listed on 43 of the 100 ballots, but Jackson received one first-place vote, which was worth two points in the process.
Adebayo, the center out of Kentucky selected at No. 14 last June, appeared in 69 games, including 19 starts, averaging 6.9 points on .512 shooting, 5.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in an average of 19.8 minutes. He closed the season fourth among rookies in
[Adebayo] is heading into an offseason with a lot of momentum.” Erik Spoelstra, Heat coach
field-goal percentage, sixth in rebounds and ninth in blocks, leading the Heat with 91 dunks, with his 41 blocked shots the fourth-highest total by a Heat rookie.
Named first-team All-Rookie on Tuesday were unanimous selections Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers and Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz, each with 200 points, as well as the Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum (199 points), Los Angeles Lakers’ Kyle Kuzma (193) and Chicago Bulls’ Lauri Markkanen (173).
Named second-team All-Rookie were the Dallas Mavericks Dennis Smith (96 voting points), Lakers’ Lonzo Ball (87), West Palm Beach product John Collins of the Atlanta Hawks (76), Sacramento Kings’ Bogdan Bogdanovich (75) and the Suns’ Jackson (44).
Unlike several of the All-Rookie selections, Adebayo, who turns 21 on July 18, found himself dealing with playoff-race basketball from the outset.
“Every game that we played,” Spoelstra said after the season, “we were playing for our lives to get into the playoffs. That is exponentially important and then helps improvement. And Bam was able to experience all of that. That was great. He is heading into an offseason with a lot of momentum.”
It is work, Adebayo said, that is ongoing.
“The summer is all about working,” he said. “So this summer I’m just going to get in the gym. I’m going to be prepared even more than this year.”
Adebayo wound up as part of a three-center rotation under Spoelstra that also included starter Hassan Whiteside and reserve Kelly Olynyk.
The Heat have had 11 All-Rookie selections, with Dwyane Wade the lone unanimous selection in the franchise’s 30 seasons, in 2004.
In addition to Wade and Beasley, the Heat’s other first-team All-Rookie selections were Sherman Douglas in 1990, Steve Smith in 1992 and Caron Butler in 2003.
In addition to Winslow, named second-team All-Rookie for the Heat were Kevin Edwards in 1989, Glen Rice in 1990, Willie Burton in 1991, Udonis Haslem in 2004 and Chalmers in 2009.
The NBA expanded the selection of All-Rookie to two teams in 1988-89, the Heat’s inaugural season.
The three previous Heat lottery picks who failed to earn All-Rookie recognition were Harold Miner (No. 12, 1992), Khalid Reeves (No. 12, 1994) and Kurt Thomas (No. 10, 1995).
The Heat have never had an NBA Rookie of the Year, with LeBron James winning the award with the Cleveland Cavaliers during Wade’s rookie season.