Erik Spoelstra Begs Injured Players to Suit Up With Half His Team Out

The Miami Heat are, unfortunately for them, not hot. They are in the middle of a frustrating four-game losing streak and head coach Erik Spoelstra has publicly declared his wish for his injured players to get out on the court with a limp and give it their best shot.

“At some point, hopefully we’ll be getting some guys back,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Even if they’re not fully 100 percent, as long as they’re close enough. Maybe they can give us a little bit of reinforcement even if it’s just short minutes. That’s where we are right now. Just give us whatever you have, whatever you have just give us. If you’re used to playing 30 minutes, give us 15. If you’re used to playing 20 minutes, give us eight. So we can kind of manage things right now.”

You can see why his pleas make sense, considering he has ELEVEN players out at the moment. Most notably, Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Duncan Robinson.

Herro (ankle) is questionable for Wednesday’s game against the Wizards, Butler (knee) will be out, Adebayo is listed as probable for Wednesday with a left knee contusion, while Robinson (ankle) has been ruled out for Wednesday’s matchup, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reports.

Heat’s Point guard Herro hasn’t played since November 5 but he is hopeful to make his return on Wednesday. Before injury struck, he was averaging 19.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists.

Tyler Herro says he will return “soon.” Doesn’t want to deal with ankle issues for the rest of the year; hence, his waiting.

Tomorrow? “Hopefully,” he said.

— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) November 22, 2022

It really isn’t a good time for Miami’s stars to be out as they have a pretty hectic upcoming schedule. They face Wizards on Wednesday and again on Friday. Then Sunday is against the Hawks before two away games against the defending Eastern Conference champions Boston Celtics.