After a disappointing season that saw them get booted out of the first round, the Miami Heat’s fortunes don’t appear to be getting better with some news arriving on injured shooting guard Dion Waiters.
Following ankle surgery, last January, the former Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder player does not appear to be close to returning and will probably miss the beginning of training camp.
In a report by Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald, Briante Weber, whom the team signed last month, had this to say about Waiter’s rehabilitation:
“He’s doing his own workouts; he is on his own lane,” Weber said at Bam Adebayo’s South Beach event benefiting Adebayo’s charitable foundation.
“The team we have, he doesn’t need to rush it,” Weber said. “We have guys capable of taking his share and holding it down until he gets back. We’re preaching to him to get healthy first and don’t rush it. The one thing you don’t want is to reinjure yourself. The game’s not going anywhere. We need you for the long run.”
While Weber is indeed right that the Heat have several options at two-guard, few possess the offensive versatility and explosiveness that Waiters brings to the table.
After finally finding a nice groove in Erik Spoelstra’s system that saw him average 15.2 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game over the last two seasons, many expected him to take another leap forward in the 2018-19 campaign, especially with Dwayne Wade’s return still uncertain.
However, Waiters was unable to beat his initial eight-to-ten-month timetable and may look to extend his recuperation until late November. Still, we wish him well on his road to recovery. At this point, his long-term health should be the unquestioned number one priority.
Tune in to ClutchPoints for more updates on Dion Waiters' status.
Follow Us
Subscribe