Google Play Store locks users into its controlled ecosystem. Here are the several options available to avoid the Play Store, and why you may want to consider them (yes, before your favorite app is mistakenly removed as well) This video is targeted towards individuals looking to deGoogle.
That’s grand for the likes of us who can easily install over adb and such but that’s no good to those like my 74 year old mother.
But you don’t need adb to install APKs on the phone.