This current Miami Heat build has reached heights that nobody thought they would over the last five years. And they wouldn’t have ever gotten there without the leadership from their star duo in Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. Two trips to the NBA Finals and even seconds away from a third in five years was enough to prove a lot of media and fans wrong about the Heat.
They have still fell short of the ultimate goal, but a new season under the core’s belt and a chance for a healthy start again will make their quest to get the job done as fierce as ever. CBS Sports has been speaking highly of the Heat in recent days, first with acknowledging coach Erik Spoelstra as the best in the league. But more recently, they have put Butler and Adebayo in some elite conversations on their recent player rankings list heading into the new season.
Butler and Adebayo found themselves positioned at 22 and 23 overall, respectively. It was a decline in both their rankings from the outlet a year ago, with Butler dropping from being listed at ninth. Additionally, Adebayo dropped 3 spots. However, the duo was one of only five teams to be represented as a pair of players in the top 25, behind just the Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks.
“Butler is what he is: A great player who paces himself in the regular season in order to produce superstar postseason stretches. The stats fill every column and the impact always adds up,” CBS Sports’ Brad Botkin wrote.
Sam Quinn, the CBS writer who covered Spoelstra’s top coach ranking also wrote about Adebayo’s ranking:
“The player we know Adebayo be to be is an automatic top-25 selection. He’s been a full-time starter for five years and he’s never missed an All-Defense selection in that span. He’s a great passer who might actually get appreciated for it if he wasn’t living in the Jokic era.”
The fact that the major sports outlet still thinks of this duo highly shows a lot about what they have been able to do in Miami. Last season’s injury riddled disappointment may have dropped their position across the media in general, but CBS Sports has been fair on this one. Butler especially is coming off a season-ending injury and clearly didn’t play up to standards throughout the year prior.
There could be a case that Adebayo dropping in the rankings is questionable, considering he is coming off an All-Star season and earned first team All-Defensive honors. However, the Heat’s underwhelming year that resulted in a first round exit was enough to become instant underdogs again in the eyes of fans and outlets covering the NBA.
