5 Post-Practice Comments from Spoelstra, Dragic, Adebayo, Jones Jr

The Miami Heat had an early practice on Saturday morning, preparing for the start of the playoffs. They spoke with some media afterward, including some discussion on the health of Derrick Jones Jr. Here’s what was said…

Post-Practice Comment #1:

Derrick Jones Jr., on his health,"Good just a little sore."

— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) August 15, 2020

Derrick Jones Jr started the session speaking about the injury of course. He said he feels good but just a little sore. This is definitely great to hear since it doesn’t seem as serious as first expected. He also mentions that he’s hopeful that he will be ready by the first round of the playoffs, but will take it day by day. He says that he just did not see the second screen on that specific play, and mentions “he came out of nowhere.” Spoelstra was also happy to hear the seriousness of it, saying “Thank goodness he has what he has today.”

Post-Practice Comment #2:

Bam Adebayo on what he brings to the court: "I consider myself one of one."

— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) August 15, 2020

Bam Adebayo got asked about the match-up of him and Myles Turner, and if he reminds him of himself at all. He quickly added “no.” Then continues saying that he thinks of himself as “one of one.” He says that he’s one of those guys that can do absolutely everything on the court. Bam Adebayo will be looking to display the scoring side of his game during the playoffs a little more, since this team will be looking to him to score in tough stretches. And with Bam’s confidence at an all time high right now, I’d feel bad for anyone having to guard him in a 7 game series.

Post-Practice Comment #3:

Dragic said he doesn't care if he starts or comes off the bench and apparently has no clarity whether Spo will stick with Dragic/Robinson/Butler/Bam/Crowder starting quintet that played very well as a unit in Disney, with Kendrick Nunn unavailable for a few games.

— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) August 15, 2020

Goran Dragic seems to know as much as everybody else does when regarding the starting lineup for the first round. He says that he doesn’t care if he starts or comes off of the bench. As I mentioned before, it doesn’t matter to him because he has thrived in both situations. He has a natural ability to lead and score, which happens no matter who is on the floor with him. But with Kendrick’s recent struggles, it would be no surprise if Spoelstra started him in this series. And if he doesn’t start, he will see an extended amount of minutes off of the bench.

Post-Practice Comment #4

Bam, in pre-playoff Zoom call, says you can "put me on a starting guard" for 5 minutes, "crazy stuff like that." One of many reasons for his high value.

— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) August 15, 2020

Bam got to talking about himself in today’s interview, including the different spots he could be utilized. He says, “put me on a starting guard.” I bet Erik Spoelstra would have no problem sticking Bam Adebayo on Victor Oladipo in this series, but that would be a huge risk for foul trouble. You are going to need Bam Adebayo in this series as much as possible, which is why there’s no need to risk this early. But, he might see some extended minutes on Oladipo down the stretch of games in the fourth quarter.

Post-Practice Comment #5:

Erik Spoelstra said Jae Crowder (knee) practiced today.

— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) August 15, 2020

Erik Spoelstra gave a quick update on Miami’s Jae Crowder today. He said that he practiced today, which definitely is a good sign. He was tagged as questionable yesterday prior to the game, which seems to be a good sign that he will be ready for game 1 of the first round. Miami will need their versatile power forward in this series, especially since he spent a lot of minutes guarding Victor Oladipo in the game earlier in the week. And that’s not even discussing the amount of efficient three point shooting he has endured at a high volume. This Heat team needs a healthy Jae Crowder to make some noise in the playoffs.