The Miami Heat host the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday and the team will be without the services of point guard Goran Dragic and center Hassan Whiteside.
Dragic is dealing with a sore calf, while Whiteside is still suffering from a hip strain.
https://twitter.com/MiamiHEAT/status/1101978281912479745
Whiteside is missing his third consecutive game on Saturday. He’s averaging 12.9 points, 12.3 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game this season in 53 games. The 29-year-old is shooting an efficient 55.5 percent from the field and has recorded 30 double-doubles.
Dragic played in the Heat's last game versus the Houston Rockets. The lefty put up 21 points, five rebounds and five assists in 24 minutes. Miami lost by three.
It's been a frustrating season for Dragic, who has only played in 18 games after undergoing right knee surgery in December. The 32-year-old is averaging 15.3 points, 2.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists this season and shooting 41.9 percent from the floor, 33.3 percent from the 3-point line and 82.1 percent from beyond the arc.
The Heat are 27-34 on the season, good for 10th place in the Eastern Conference standings. Miami is one and a half games back of the Charlotte Hornets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East. A win against a tough Nets team on Saturday would be huge for the Heat.