Los Angeles Lakers have taken a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals, going into pole position to claim the 2020 championship with a hard-fought victory over Miami Heat in game 4 of the series.
It was a game Heat needed to win in order to even the series, but Lakers played a resolute match and made vital points that mattered the most, particularly in the fourth quarter, going on to win 102-96.
Heat had Bam Adebayo back for the game, but it was evident he had not yet attained 100% fitness, and he was on the court for 33mins.22s. Playing 10mins less than Jimmy Butler who played for 43mins:26s.
Warming up and ready to go for Game 4@Bam1of1 | #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/Y38pNxty9H
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 7, 2020
Although he was not at his dominant best, Adebayo still ended up with double figures, making 15pts in the game. On the defensive part, he made 7 rebounds and had one assist and a steal in the game.
DON'T MISS THIS NBA FINALS GAME 4 ACTION ON ABC!
Bam Adebayo is back and takes it the length of the floor, AND-1! 👀🔥#NBAFinals presented by YouTube TV pic.twitter.com/gJRRzLbOcF
— NBA (@NBA) October 7, 2020
With an extra day in between Game 4 and Game 5, it could afford Heat the opportunity for Adebayo to recuperate better, and also to have another of their star player, Goran Dragic back from an injury. It’s the Lakers’ championships to lose now, but Heat have a good chance to come back into contention with players returning from injuries.
Game 4 might have flattered Lakers a bit, and it looked much closer than the final outcome because with over 2mins left in the 4th quarter, it would have been down to a 3pt game if Adebayo’s shotgun violation shot had stood, before Caldwell-Pope made a layup at the other end to stretch it for Lakers.
Burning the boats for Friday. pic.twitter.com/5yAQcfEhO0
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 7, 2020
