The Miami Heat have been faced with immense adversity in recent years, which comes with clear positives and negatives.
One of the greatest positives is "mental toughness" that All-Star center Bam Adebayo referenced after the season-ending Game 5 loss to the Boston Celtics. Their mindset in the midst of injuries, personal issues, and lineup changes is equally as important as their on-court play.
"I would say we've gained a lot of mental toughness," Adebayo said. "Going through ups and downs, guys being out, learning how to win with 50 different starting lineups, going through that. I feel like it not only helped me as a captain that the ship is going to get rocky at times."
The negative is it's nearly impossible to win an NBA championship when hit with the number of injuries that the Heat had. Stars Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier did not appear in the Celtics series due to injuries, while rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr.'s postseason was cut short.
This left Adebayo and Tyler Herro as the leaders of the team, who were relied on to record the bulk of the scoring. Adebayo put forth an admirable effort by crossing the 20-point mark in each game while Herro failed to meet his expectations on the offensive end.
Anthony Pasciolla works as a contributing writer to Inside the Heat. He can be reached at ampasciolla@gmail.com or follow him on Instagram @anthony.pasciolla.
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