The Miami Heat are preparing to bounce back in a huge way for Game 4 after a frustrating Saturday night in the 104-84 loss to the Boston Celtics. However, the injury report is a mixed bag with players that will miss the crucial contest, but also features the likely return of a key player for Miami.
In terms of the player that is returning, it will be Delon Wright who missed Game 3 due to a “personal family matter,” but is listed as “probable” for Monday night. Wright joined Miami through the buyout market as he left his last team with the Washington Wizards to join an organization that has a winning background, plus has a little familiarity as his brother, Dorrell, played for the Heat from 2004-2010.
Wright has been a defensive presence for Miami and even showed out on offense in Game 1 of the series where he made five three-pointers. When asked about his absence and the other injuries that follow the team, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said before Game 3 that he's more focused on finding different ways to beat Boston.
“We're not even thinking about that,” Spoelstra said when asked about the injuries. “The challenge is the Boston Celtics, you know, they present some challenges that we have to dive into the competition and find a way. Maybe a different way than the other night but that's the bottom line collectively for 48 minutes or more, wrap your mind around doing some ridiculously tough things and that's what the playoffs are all about.”
Jimmy Butler breaks silence on his MCL injury
When it comes to the Heat's featured star and best player in Jimmy Butler, he is out for Game 4 and will likely be unavailable for this series however many games it goes. He suffered an MCL sprain in the first play-in tournament game against the Philadelphia 76ers and was announced by the team to be out for several weeks as he spoke about a possible timeline to come back on the TNT broadcast since he was on the bench.
“I don’t know about a timeline, but we’ve been working,” Butler said as part of an interview with Chris Haynes. “I want to hoop, I want to get out here, I want some of this.”
Even though the cards are stacked against Miami because of the continuous injuries, Butler still believes in his group to get the job done against the Celtics. He even poked fun about the national coverage of Boston saying he's “tired of hearing” praise towards the rival.
“I think we believe. It’s everybody else that don’t,” Butler said to Haynes. “If I’ve got to hear one more praise about Boston on national TV when we win a game, I’m tired of hearing that, man.”
Terry Rozier still an unknown
While it has been known that Butler will not likely play this series, there has still been some hope for star Terry Rozier, but he will be once again out for Game 4 against the Celtics. Because of a neck injury, Monday night will be his 10th straight missed game as the last time he played was on April 7 against the Indiana Pacers.
After Sunday's practice, Spoelstra was asked about Rozier's status and said “I don’t know. The outlook is still the same. It’s day to day. When it changes, I’ll let you know,” according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Even if Rozier is not able to play due to the neck spasms, Spoelstra said to ClutchPoints that he is still contributing off the court, especially when he can't be out there against his former team.
“I mean, Terry is a competitive spirit. You always feel it,” Spoelstra said about how Rozier is a factor even off the court for the Heat.” He feels a certain way about this matchup and all that stuff is good, but you feel for him not being out there because this is what all the competitors want to be out there for this.”
The “we have enough” mantra stronger than ever
While the Heat are still without two main pieces like Butler and Rozier, the Heat repeat the same mantra as before which is that they believe they have enough to prevail. Spoelstra repeated this after Sunday's practice as he expressed they “understand the challenge” according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
“We have our guys, we have enough to get the job done,” Spoelstra said despite the Heat being down 2-1 in the series against the high-powered Celtics. “We understand the challenge and that’s what our competitors love about this series, we know we have to play hard and we also have to play well.”
Every contest at this point is a must-win, but Game 4 is the most crucial up until this point as Boston could take a 3-1 series lead Monday night. Them doing that could signal the beginning of the end for the Heat and their playoff chances.
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