2 min read • December 02, 2021
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Miami Heat star big man Bam Adebayo has been diagnosed with a torn UCL in his right thumb that will require surgery, the team announced on Wednesday.
The team said it will release a return timeline after the surgery, but multiple reports say it could be up to a 6-week absence. Accelerated protocols and a successful surgery could get Adebayo back sometime in the 4-to-6 week range, returning to play with a thumb splint.
Six weeks of recovery would put the 2020 All-Star back in the lineup by mid-January after missing approx. 20 games. Among that slate are 2 bouts with the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks, the Philadelphia 76ers, and the Atlanta Hawks, and an 8-game West Coast road trip starting on Dec. 28 that will feature contests against the Warriors and Suns.
Adebayo is the second Heat forward to go down this season. Markieff Morris has yet to return from the neck injury he attained on a much-maligned blindside hit from Nikola Jokic on Nov. 8.
The 24-year-old big man suffered the injury early in the 3rd quarter on Nov. 29, but stayed in the game, and scored 20 points from there on out. Miami initially diagnosed the injury as a sprained right thumb, but further tests revealed the torn ligament.
In 2017, Chris Paul endured the same injury on his left hand, missing 14 games (39 days) for the Clippers before playing the final 25 games of the season. That is an abnormally fast return, but something for Adebayo to strive for.
The 5th-year big has averaged 18.7 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists on 51.9% shooting for the 13-8 Heat, who are 3rd in the East and boast the league’s 3rd-best defense, allowing only 103.4 points per game.
Dewayne Dedmon started at center in the 3 games Adebayo has missed this season, and has averaged 5.3 points and 4.9 rebounds in 14 minutes per game for the Heat. Dedmon, Duncan Robinson, and P.J. Tucker are the only Heat players to play in all 21 games this season.
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