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The Miami Heat are on the verge of clinching the top seed in the Eastern Conference, but they received a bit of troubling news when it comes to veteran P.J. Tucker as the regular season comes to a close. Tucker underwent an MRI for a calf injury and it showed a strain, putting him out for the final two regular-season games and possibly beyond, according to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Tucker will be reevaluated in a week, which is just days before the playoffs begin. The hope is he'll be ready to roll after this reevaluation, but the Heat can't count on that.
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This is notable given Miami could wind up facing a first-round matchup against the Brooklyn Nets. While the assumption is the Nets will wind up as the No. 7 seed after the play-in tournament, meaning the Heat would likely avoid them in the first round, there's still a chance at them being No. 8. Having a healthy Tucker to face Kevin Durant would be important.
Miami would surely prefer to avoid that first-round matchup regardless, and, of course, the team would love for Tucker to not miss any playoff basketball no matter the opponent. The Heat could also wind up playing the Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, or Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the playoffs.
Miami acquired Tucker this past offseason after he won an NBA title with the Milwaukee Bucks. The 36-year-old is enjoying a stellar season in South Beach, averaging 7.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists while shooting 48.4% from the field and 41.5% from 3-point range in 27.9 minutes per game. He has started 70 of 71 games this season.
The Heat are 52-28 on the season. They sit two games ahead of the Boston Celtics for the top seed in the East.
