Heat star Bam Adebayo expected to miss six weeks with torn UCL

Heat big man Bam Adebayo sustained a torn UCL in his left thumb, according to a press release from the team. Adebayo will undergo surgery on the injury this weekend and has been ruled out indefinitely.

The Heat will have a better sense of Adebayo’s potential recovery timeline once the procedure is complete. However, the expectation is that he’ll be sidelined for approximately six weeks, tweets Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press.

Adebayo, 24, is the anchor of Miami’s defense and one of the team’s go-to scorers. In 18 games (32.9 MPG) so far this season, he has averaged 18.7 PPG, 10.2 RPG and 3.2 APG with a .519 FG%.

The Heat have had bad injury luck against Denver so far this season. Forward Markieff Morris hasn’t played since the Nov. 8 meeting between the two teams, suffering whiplash when he was hit from behind by Nikola Jokic. Adebayo tore the UCL in his thumb during the Heat’s rematch vs. the Nuggets on Monday.

Morris and Dewayne Dedmon, who is currently day-to-day with a knee injury, would see an uptick in minutes during Adebayo’s absence if they’re available. P.J. Tucker could also take on an increased role, while a backup big man like Udonis Haslem or Omer Yurtseven could start playing regular minutes.