Heat’s Norman Powell out vs. Rockets, week-to-week after MRI reveals Grade 1 groin strain
.JPG "Norman Powell #24 of the Miami Heat reacts to a three-point shot against the Phoenix Suns during the second half of the NBA game at Mortgage Matchup Center on January 25, 2026 in Phoenix.")
Just as the Miami Heat appeared to be getting healthier, the Heat’s lone All-Star this season is now dealing with an injury.
Heat starting guard Norman Powell will miss Saturday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets at Kaseya Center (3:30 p.m., Prime Video) because of a strained right groin.
An MRI on Friday revealed a Grade 1 strain for Powell, which is considered a mild strain. The Heat is labeling Powell as week to week.
It’s a nagging injury that also had Powell on the injury report for Thursday’s game in Philadelphia, as he was listed as questionable due to what the team then labeled as “right groin soreness.”
Powell opted to play through the pain, but he couldn’t finish Thursday night’s 124-117 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Powell was used in his usual starting role, but he left the game with 4:46 remaining in the second quarter and did not return after aggravating his groin injury. Powell totaled three points on 1-of-5 shooting from the field and 1-of-4 shooting on threes, three rebounds and two assists in 10 first-half minutes before his groin issue forced him to exit the game early.
“We’re going to have to evaluate that when we get back in Miami,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said when asked about Powell’s situation following Thursday’s loss to the76ers. “It wasn’t that he couldn’t [play], it was that one slide against [Tyrese] Maxey, and he overextended it. So that’s the same one that he’s been dealing with, and we’ll just have to see what it is.”
Powell, 32, has also been playing through lower back tightness in recent games.
“It’s really frustrating,” Powell said of his injuries hours before leaving Thursday’s loss early. “But at this point in the season, I feel like everybody’s going through something. So it’s all about pain tolerance and management. For me, you guys know, I’m going to always try to push through, and I have a very high pain tolerance. ... I try to push my body as much as I can. It’s kind of crazy because coming [to Philadelphia] last time, I had the groin issue on the left side and now I’m dealing with the right. But just continuing to try to manage my body, take care of my body, and be able to be available as much as possible.”
Saturday will mark the 12th game that Powell has missed this season, and five of those absences have come due to groin issues. He missed three straight games from late October to early November because of a strained right groin, one game in late November because of a strained left groin and now at least one game because of this latest strained right groin.
If Powell is forced to miss at least one week, he will be out for a minimum of four games — Saturday vs. Rockets, Tuesday vs. Brooklyn Nets, Wednesday vs. Nets and Friday at Charlotte Hornets.
While Powell is sidelined, the Heat is expected to start guard Tyler Herro in his place. Herro, who started Thursday’s second half in place of the hobbled Powell, has been primarily used as a starter since the start of the 2022-23 season but has played as a reserve in each of the last four games after returning from a rib injury.
The loss of Powell will hurt the Heat’s offense. Powell is averaging a team-high and career-high 22.5 points per game while shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range in his first season with the Heat.
Powell is currently eligible to sign an extension with the Heat worth as much as $128.5 million over four seasons, with a 2026-27 starting salary of $28.7 million. If Powell can’t agree to an extension with the Heat by June 30, 2026, he would become an unrestricted free agent this upcoming offseason.
The Heat’s leading trio of Bam Adebayo, Herro and Powell have only been available to play 11 games together so far this season due in large part to Herro’s injury issues. Herro has missed 40 games this season.
“It’s obviously very tough,” Herro said Thursday of the Heat’s ongoing injury issues. “We just want to stay healthy, keep guys healthy, pray for Norm. I hope he’s all right.”
Along with missing Powell, the Heat will remain without Nikola Jovic (lower back injury management) and Terry Rozier (not with team) against the Rockets. The rest of Miami’s roster is expected to be available.
The Rockets ruled out Steven Adams (left ankle surgery), Tristen Newton (G League), Jabari Smith Jr. (right ankle sprain), Jae’Sean Tate (right knee sprain) and Fred VanVleet (right knee ACL repair) for Saturday’s game in Miami. The rest of Houston’s roster is expected to be available.
Saturday’s matchup against the Rockets marks the start of an eight-game stretch that includes seven games at home for the Heat.
“Protect home court,” Adebayo said of the goal during this segment of the schedule “We’ve already been struggling on the road. So we go home, win some games, be in our atmosphere, be in our habitat where our fans are cheering for us, and see if we can string some Ws together.”
The Heat enters Friday in danger of needing to qualify for the playoffs through the NBA’s play-in tournament for the fourth straight season.
The NBA’s play-in tournament features the seventh-through-10th-place teams competing for the final two playoff seeds in each conference, and the Heat enters Friday in eight place in the Eastern Conference. The Heat needs to finish among the East’s top six teams to clinch a playoff spot without needing to take part in the play-in tournament.
The eighth-place Heat (31-29) is 2.5 games behind the sixth-place 76ers (33-26) and one game behind the seventh-place Orlando Magic (31-27) in the East standings. Miami only has 22 games left to play this regular season to try to avoid the NBA’s play-in tournament for the first time in four years.
“I don’t want to be in that [expletive] no more,” Adebayo said of the play-in tournament after Thursday’s setback in Philadelphia. “We’re better than being in the play-in for the last four years.”
This story was originally published February 27, 2026 at 5:07 PM.
