Miami Heat big man Bam Adebayo revealed that he thinks the NBA title in the league’s Orlando, Fla. bubble in the 2019-20 season was the hardest ever.
Former Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard – who was a part of the team’s NBA Finals win in the 2019-20 season – agreed with Adebayo on social media.
Twin know what’s up 💯 pic.twitter.com/z5psc8Cbpc
— Dwight Howard (@DwightHoward) December 27, 2023
The 2019-20 season was different than any other in NBA history, as the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the league for several months, starting in March of 2020.
While the teams returned to action later in the summer of that year, they were forced to play in a quarantined environment to avoid spreading the virus. With the playoffs – and end of the regular season – getting delayed, it made things tougher on some players.
Plus, players were unable to have contact with much of the outside world while playing in the bubble, and fans weren’t allowed inside the highly controlled environment.
Still, the Lakers were able to come out on top in the 2019-20 season, defeating Adebayo and the Heat in the NBA Finals.
Miami made a great run through the Eastern Conference that season, knocking off the Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics.
Meanwhile, the Lakers cruised through the Western Conference, needing just five games in each of their first three playoff series. Los Angeles downed the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets to make the Finals.
While Adebayo and the Heat put up a fight, forcing the series to go six games, Howard, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Lakers came out on top.
In one of the most unique seasons in NBA history, the Lakers were able to endure the challenges of the bubble.
Howard had a key role on the Lakers in the 2019-20 season, appearing in 69 regular season games and making two starts. In that season’s playoffs, the eight-time All-Star averaged 5.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game while shooting 68.4 percent from the field.
The Lakers and Heat both had to endure long stays in the bubble since they made the NBA Finals, so it’s not surprising that Howard and Adebayo share the same thoughts.
