Justise Winslow moves closer to return. Here’s how he can help the Heat
Heat forward Justise Winslow is moving closer to a return.
Winslow, who has missed the past 14 games with a back injury, has been upgraded to questionable for Sunday’s game against the Trail Blazers at AmericanAirlines Arena. The injury began as a lower back strain and was reclassified as a lower back bone bruise on Dec. 26 after an MRI.
It’s only part of what has been an injury-riddled start to the season for Winslow, who has played in just 10 of the Heat’s first 35 games. Before Winslow’s current back injury, he missed two games due to lower back stiffness and nine games due to a concussion.
In the 10 games Winslow has been available for this season, the 23-year-old has averaged 12.4 points while shooting 39.4 percent from the field and 23.1 percent on threes, 7.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 33.7 minutes. The Heat has outscored its opponent by 53 points in the 337 minutes Winslow has played.
The Heat especially misses Winslow’s defense. Considered to be one of the team’s top defenders, he has limited those he has guarded this season to 38.6 percent shooting — 5.6 worse than their normal shooting percentage.
Over the past 14 games without Winslow, the Heat has posted a 10-4 record but has taken a step back defensively. Miami has allowed 109.9 points per 100 possessions during this stretch, a defensive rating that ranks 17th in the NBA over this 14-game window.
With Winslow on the court, the Heat has posted an elite defensive rating of 99 points per 100 possessions. For perspective, the Bucks entered Saturday with the league’s top team defensive rating for the season at 101.2.
Among Heat players who have played in at least 10 games this season, Winslow owns the top individual defensive rating.
If Winslow is able to make his return Sunday, he will provide a boost to a Heat defense that has struggled recently.
▪ Rookie forward KZ Okpala and two-way contract guard Daryl Macon have been ruled out for Sunday’s game because both are currently playing with the Heat’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
