Getty Miami Heat All-Star Jimmy Butler has been out since Jan. 9 due to COVID-19 protocols.
Jimmy Butler hasn’t played a basketball game since Jan. 9 after being sidelined due to the NBA’s strict COVID-19 protocols. The Miami Heat have gone 2-5 during a brutal seven-game stretch without their best player, but there are reinforcements on the horizon.
According to the Sun-Sentinel’s Ira Winderman, Butler is expected to be cleared from pandemic protocol today and could be back on the court as soon as Thursday. It’s a “matter of conditioning” as the team gets set to host a six-game homestand at American Airlines Arena in Miami, with those coronavirus-sniffing dogs at the entrances. Butler is averaging 15.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.3 assists in 29 minutes per game.
Meanwhile, Heat guard Avery Bradley is about two days ahead of Butler in his health protocol status. He told Chris Haynes of Yahoo! Sports that he may be back in the lineup for Wednesday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets. Bradley has been out since Jan. 9 after testing positive for COVID-19 and expressed “frustration” about the way the league handled his diagnosis. He has a seven-year-old son who suffers from a respiratory illness.
The Heat have also been playing without rising star guard Tyler Herro (neck spasms) and center Meyers Leonard (shoulder strain). It’s been a wild start to the year for the defending Eastern Conference champions.
“We are just going through a rough patch right now, trying to figure it out,” center Bam Adebayo said. “We don’t use the crutch of we’re down in numbers. It’s always next man up, so we going to figure this thing out and, like I keep saying, I’m a positive person and I feel like positive energy will turn this around and we’ll get on a winning steak soon.”
NBA source tells the Sun Sentinel that the expectation is Jimmy Butler will be cleared from pandemic protocol today. Then it will come down to a matter of conditioning. Heat play at Brooklyn tonight, then next play Wednesday at home against Denver.
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Heat Coach Reflects on Kobe Bryant
The league is getting ready to commemorate the one-year mournful anniversary of the passing of Kobe Bryant on Tuesday (Jan. 26). The Los Angeles Lakers legend died in a helicopter crash with his 13-year-old daughter (Gianna) on board. Many coaches and players are already talking about what Bryant meant to the basketball world, including Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.
Erik Spoelstra on Kobe Bryant as we approach the one year anniversary of his death: “I still can’t believe he’s not here anymore. I can’t believe it’s been a year. Everything he represented as a competitor, just really has forced everybody to honor that.”
The Heat had just finished wrapping up practice last year when Spoelstra received the tragic news, with several people crowding into his office to talk about it. It quickly spread “throughout this building.”
“It goes far beyond history,” Spoelstra said of Bryant’s legacy, via the Sun-Sentinel. “There’s just an iconic respect for the generation of players that are in this league right now or even the ones who are going to come into this league. I still can’t believe that he’s not here anymore. And I can’t believe it’s been a year.”
Another Crack at Beating the Brooklyn Nets
The Heat will attempt to break their two-game losing streak tonight (Jan. 25) with a rematch against the Brooklyn Nets. Miami fell 128-124 on Saturday night in New York despite a Herculean 41-point performance from Adebayo.
Waking up with another chance at the boys in Brooklyn.
#HEATTwitter let’s get it!
Brooklyn’s victory marked the first one for the new Big Three — James Harden, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant — and they logged valuable minutes down the stretch. Durant scored a team-high 31 points, with Irving chipping in with 28 points and Harden finishing with 12 points and 11 assists.
“All three of those guys, they’re just so damn skilled,” Spoelstra said, via the Associated Press. “Off the dribble, their shooting ability, their ability to see open players, and that’s why they’re three of the best in this business.”
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