“Lowkey still talkin’ s**t to Jayson Tatum about it”: Bam Adebayo explains why his block against Celtics in last year’s playoffs was a top 3 Heat moment ever

One of the most iconic moments from last year’s playoffs was the time when Bam Adebayo blocked Jayson Tatum for the win.

Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals was a high-stakes game that would set the tone for the rest of the series. The Heat gained a mental edge over the Celtics by taking the game to overtime and then triumphing.

One could argue that the Celtics were the more talented team. They definitely did have a little more in terms of top-end talent. But Erik Spoelstra’s schemes, planning and the defensive effort exhibited by every Heat member gave them the edge.

Where the Heat had the advantage, they pressed on it till the Celtics yielded. Bam Adebayo feasted on both ends against the less-talented and undersized Celtics’ big men.

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The signature moment was, of course, Bam blocking Jayson Tatum to seal Game 1 for the Heat.

Bam Adebayo takes us through how he felt while blocking Jayson Tatum

Bam was recently on Duncan Robinson’s ‘The Long Shot’ podcast. He went in-depth about the whole experience of the block and its aftermath:

“I haven’t forgotten about it, cuz I lowkey still talk s**t to Jayson Tatum about it. Cuz a lot of the players in my draft class grew up together, playing AAU together, playing against each other.”

“So we all know each other. So we all talk s**t to each other. I still remember the block, it’s still unreal to me. It felt way faster than it did in actual time. When the block happened, in my mind, it was like ‘Boom!’ and it was over.”

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“I was like ‘Oh s**t, this is game! The game is over.’ And in my mind, I’m like ‘Damn, we’re going down in history.’ I think it’s a top 3 moment in Heat history.”

Tatum and his Celtics went down 2-0 in the series before bringing Gordon Hayward back from injury. But even this shot in the arm wasn’t enough for the Cs, who lost at the ECF stage for the 3rd time in 4 playoffs.