HOT
The Best of the Day: April 18th, 2021
See the best of the day in sports from April 18, 2021 including Bam's buzzer-beater vs. BKN, Shane Bieber's historically dominant start, and more!
Sky Sports
The ‘Best of the Day’ is a daily PSO original series showcasing the most significant stories, highlights, and facts going on in the land of the NFL, NBA, & MLB every day. Get a recap on EVERYTHING that happened on 4/18 here.
The reigning Eastern Conference champions squared off with the current Eastern Conference favorite as the Heat and Nets battled it out in Miami. Both teams were missing star players as James Harden and Jimmy Butler were out with injuries, and Kevin Durant was removed after the first quarter (thigh contusion), showing the massive risk around them as a title contender.
Bam Adebayo rose to the occasion with the buzzer-beating game-winner to lift the Heat over the Nets as Shane Bieber’s historic start to 2021 continued, Terry Rozier made Hornets history, Jaycee Horn’s NFL Scouting Report was provided by PSO, and April 18th marked the anniversary of John Stockton surpassing his own NBA Assists record that still stands today.
Here is the best of the day from April 18, 2021:
Bam Adebayo’s GW buzzer-beater lifted Miami over Brooklyn
The Miami Heat earned a 109-107 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday thanks to Bam Adebayo. With the clock ticking away, Adebayo drove left, stopped, and sank a 13-foot jumper as time expired to give Miami the win. It was Adebayo’s first career buzzer-beater, as the 23-year-old Kentucky product responded well after teammate Jimmy Butler called him out for not being aggressive enough recently. His performance was especially impressive considering Butler was sidelined with an ankle injury.
🔥💥📸
— NBA (@NBA) April 18, 2021
EVERY ANGLE of @Bam1of1's #TissotBuzzerBeater! #HeatTwitter pic.twitter.com/Sg6DufLr2I
After a breakout 2019-20 season that saw him earn his first All-Star nod, Adebayo has continued to grow into one of the best young bigs in the game. In his fourth year in the Association, Adebayo is in the midst of his best season yet, averaging career-highs in PTS (19.0), AST (5.2), and FT% (80.3).
Miami will need a more aggressive Bam, along with a healthy Butler, if they want any shot at duplicating last season’s surprising run to the NBA Finals. Having dealt with a plethora of injuries and COVID issues this season, the Heat currently occupy the seventh spot in East, meaning a first round playoff matchup with the Nets potentially looms.
Brooklyn has to be worried after Kevin Durant left with another injury. He had just recently come back after missing about two months with a hamstring injury. Brooklyn has played remarkably well despite dealing with several injuries and/or absences from their Big 3. However, if they want to live up to their lofty expectations as title favorites, they will need everyone healthy and focused in time for the playoffs.
Related: Stories of the Day
BROOKLYN NETS HAVE THE MOST RISK OF ANY NBA CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDER
In Sunday night’s matchup with Miami, Brooklyn lost a heartbreaker to a Bam Adebayo buzzer-beater. However, the biggest hit to Brooklyn came in the first quarter when star player Kevin Durant left the game with a left thigh contusion. Durant is likely to miss even more time now and has only played in 24 of the team’s 57 games this season.
The star trio of Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden have only played together in seven games this season. Health, personal reasons, and COVID issues have kept the most high-profile Big 3 from playing many games together this season. Many of the real contenders this season have had issues with missing stars, but Brooklyn has been dealing with it all season.
Philly has missed Joel Embiid, the LA teams have played games without their star duos, and Denver, along with Utah, are without a star player for some time now. Although Brooklyn has posted an impressive record and overcome this adversity all season long, they are the title favorites under the assumption they will all be ready to go by playoff time. With the new injury to KD, there is even more doubt this will be possible as they’ll lack continuity even at full strength and have the most injury risk of any title contender.
COLORS KEY | FULL NETS OUTLOOK
Related: NBA Takeaways of the Day
Bam’s buzzer-beater beat Brooklyn
🔥💥📸
— NBA (@NBA) April 18, 2021
EVERY ANGLE of @Bam1of1's #TissotBuzzerBeater! #HeatTwitter pic.twitter.com/Sg6DufLr2I
Related: NBA Highlights
G Terry Rozier, CHA (W v.POR): 34 PTS (13-24 FG | 7-13 3P), 10 AST, 8 REB, 1 BLK, 2 STL, 2 TO
#PlayerOfTheDay (4/18/21) - G Terry Rozier, CHA
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 19, 2021
TOP FACTS:
- 1st Hornet with 30+ PTS/5+ REB/10+ AST/5+ 3PM
- 1 of 4 with 20+ PPG/3+ 3PG/40+ 3P% this season
- Career-highs in PPG, FGM, FG%, SPG, BPG, 3PM
KEY STATS:
34 PTS, 10 AST, 8 REB, 2 STL, 13-24 FG, 7-13 3P https://t.co/E0kfTxxBGx
Related: Players of the Day
Miami Heat (109) [GW-FG] vs. Brooklyn Nets (107)
[Highlights] @HEAT (+190) d. NETS (-220) 109-107 (GW-FG) [MIA +5 | u224]
Related: Games of the Day
Related: Facts of the Day
PSO Scouting Report: CB Jaycee Horn (South Carolina) by Ricky Eisenbart
PSO breaks down South Carolina CB Jaycee Horn’s future outlook and how his game will translate to the next level.
Jaycee Horn's NFL Scouting Report:
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 19, 2021
Physical Tools: A+
Game Film: ??
Production: ??
Risk: A-
Overall: ??
FULL evaluation:https://t.co/Vv1zhQ2Cqr
Related: Latest PSO Posts
DATE: April 18, 1991
SIGNIFICANCE: Utah Jazz HOF PG John Stockton broke his own season AST (1,164) record that stands as the record today
April 18, 1991: Utah Jazz PG John Stockton broke his own single-season AST (1,164) record he set the previous season. He currently owns all 4 of the top AST records and 7 of the 9 seasons ever recorded with 1,000+ AST
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) April 19, 2021
pic.twitter.com/yJVJZNc4ad
Related: Significant Sports History
Share the Best of the Day and follow below for more great sports content!
