Miami Heat haven't been really lucky when it comes to avoiding injuries this season, and it has affected their record. Fortunately, the Heat are 15-14 after the first 29 games of the season, which is much better than the last year. Last season, Miami earned the 15th win on January 23, and this time, the situation is better and the team is trying to fight through all the injuries.
Before the season started, Rodney McGruder was ruled out for a few months as he had to have a surgery. Beside McGruder, the Heat lost Okaro White, Justise Winslow, and Hassan Whiteside.
While Winslow might play in the next game, Whiteside will miss both games of the upcoming road trip. The same goes for James Johnson, who suffered an ankle injury during the game against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Johnson will have to miss next few games
After Hassan Whiteside went down, head coach Erik Spoelstra decided to experiment with a few new lineups and he used James Johnson as a starting forward. In 11 games as a starter, Johnson averaged 11.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game. He also shot efficiently from the field, making 50.5 percent of his shots.
However, the small forward had to leave the last game early as he suffered a right ankle injury. Johnson spent only six minutes on the floor against the Clippers, scoring 3 points and grabbing 3 rebounds.
Fortunately, the Miami Heat managed to beat the Clippers and earn their 15th win of the season. At the end, the Heat prevailed with a 5-point victory and a regular-season sweep.
James Johnson has been diagnosed with right ankle bursitis and he will miss 7 to 10 days of action. The forward will most the two-game road trip against the Atlanta Hawks and the Boston Celtics, but he will most likely return during the four-game homestand that starts on December 22 and ends a week later.
Miami will need Johnson in order to stay above .500 and finish 2017 with a positive record.
Remaining schedule of 2017
Miami Heat will play seven more games this year and four of them will be played at home. While this homestand should help the team improve the record, the Heat will have two back-to-backs, so it will be interesting to see if they can win those games.
After the Hawks and the Celtics, Miami will return home to host the Dallas Mavericks, followed by the game against the New Orleans Pelicans just a day after. Third game of the homestand will be against the Orlando Magic and it will end against the Brooklyn Nets. The Heat will then travel to Orlando to play the second game of a back-to-back, which will also be their final game of this year.
