Heat depth a strength that would grow, create more tough decisions if Morris, Oladipo return
With four straight matchups against Eastern Conference contenders, the first-place Miami Heat will learn more about itself over the next week.
That stretch begins Monday against the second-place Chicago Bulls at FTX Arena (7:30 p.m., Bally Sports Sun). Led by MVP candidate DeMar DeRozan, the Bulls stand just one game behind the Heat in the East standings.
The Heat’s string of games against some of the East’s best continues with a road back-to-back set against the defending NBA champion Bucks in Milwaukee on Wednesday and against the Nets in Brooklyn on Thursday before returning home to host Joel Embiid, James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
“Our guys are competitors,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of the week ahead following Saturday night’s 133-129 win over the San Antonio Spurs at FTX Arena. “They want to see where we stack up. It’s not the end-all, be-all, but you also don’t want to just brush it off and say it’s just another game.”
But the Heat will play at least one of those games without starting point guard Kyle Lowry, who has been ruled out of Monday’s matchup against the Bulls because of the same personal reasons that kept him out for nine straight games over two weeks from Jan. 17 through Feb. 1. There is no timetable for his return.
Those matchups against elite competition will surely reveal more, but the Heat has also reached the stage in its schedule where it already knows most of its strengths and weaknesses.
At this point, it’s the two Heat players who have been out for most of the season who create the most intrigue of what could be ahead. There’s growing optimism that forward Markieff Morris (return to competition reconditioning) and guard Victor Oladipo (right knee injury recovery) will return from injury to play at some point this season, as both traveled with the Heat to New York despite not playing in Friday’s win over the Knicks.
“I just love to see everybody try to get healthy and do what they love to do, what they’ve been doing their entire life,” Heat star Jimmy Butler said when asked about Morris and Oladipo, who have both also been ruled out of Monday’s game against the Bulls. “The fact that they’ve been out for a little bit, but still are coming in smiling and working, I think that’s the most important thing. Yeah, they want to get back. Yeah, we want them back. But in due time, they will be back and we’ll be even better.”
Morris, 32, hasn’t played since sustaining a neck injury on Nov. 8 when Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic shoved him to the court. The injury was termed “whiplash” by the Heat, but the team is now listing him as out because of a “return to competition reconditioning.”
Morris has been hoping for weeks to make his return, but medical clearance has stood in the way. Liability issues have been among the concerns that have kept him out for nearly four months, with a previous neck injury complicating the situation.
Oladipo, 29, has yet to play this season as he continues to work his way back after undergoing surgery to repair the quadriceps tendon in his right knee last May. The Heat sent Oladipo on Sunday to its G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, to take part in five-on-five court work for the second time in recent weeks, but he is not expected to play in any G League games.
Oladipo has been doing more behind the scenes over the last few weeks, including two-on-two halfcourt sessions with teammates after practices and before games with the Heat. He is expected to rejoin the Heat from the G League in Milwaukee on Wednesday.
There’s still no definitive timetable for a potential Morris return, but Oladipo’s timetable is becoming clearer. Multiple league sources confirmed an ESPN report that the hope is Oladipo, who has not played in an NBA game since April 8, will be able to make his season debut within the next two weeks.
That could have Oladipo back during the Heat’s season-long seven-game homestand that spans from Saturday through March 18.
If Morris and/or Oladipo return, the Heat’s impressive depth will create more challenging rotation decisions for Spoelstra.
The Heat’s bench entered Sunday averaging the fifth-most points in the NBA this season at 38.6 per game, with Sixth Man of the Year Award front-runner Tyler Herro establishing himself as the league’s leading bench scorer with 20.2 points per game as a reserve.
The Heat’s bench totaled 49 points in Saturday’s win over the Spurs, just one night after outscoring the Knicks’ reserves 49-18 in Friday’s win in New York.
“We got a bunch of guys who are stars in their role,” Herro said. “The guys off the bench, we all know our role. Obviously, the starting five, they do their part and they know their role. Other teams are built different than us. The way we’re built, we got a bunch of guys who can score, a bunch of guys who can make plays. On any night, it can be somebody different.”
Even without Morris and Oladipo, one regular has already been moved out of the rotation recently as the roster slowly returns to full health. Spoelstra used Herro, Gabe Vincent, Caleb Martin and Dewayne Dedmon as his four-man bench rotation in Saturday’s win over San Antonio.
That left Max Strus out of the rotation, as he received his first DNP-CD (did not play, coach’s decision) since Nov. 24. It’s just his third DNP-CD of the season.
Strus, Omer Yurtseven, Udonis Haslem, Haywood Highsmith, Kyle Guy and Javonte Smart were the six available Heat players who did not play in Saturday’s victory.
The Heat’s injury and COVID-19 issues have forced its bench rotation to evolve throughout the season. The potential return of Morris and Oladipo would likely force more changes.
“That’s why Spo is the coach, right. He’ll make the decisions,” Herro said. “But yeah, I wouldn’t want to be in his shoes.”
▪ Along with missing Lowry, Morris and Oladipo on Monday against the Bulls, the Heat also sent Smart back to the G League. Martin is listed as questionable with left Achilles soreness.
The Bulls ruled out Lonzo Ball (left knee meniscus tear), Alex Caruso (right wrist fracture), Tyler Cook (G League), Marko Simonovic (G League) and Patrick Williams (left wrist ligament tear) for Monday’s game in Miami. Nikola Vucevic is listed as probable with a left ankle sprain.
This story was originally published February 27, 2022 at 12:35 PM.
