Even though so far this year’s Miami Heat have not had to deal with nearly as many health issues as last season’s group, unfortunately injuries are still part of any NBA journey.
Having strained his hamstring in the team’s victory over the Philadelphia 76ers last Saturday, Luol Deng came out in the third quarter. However, he was back in head coach Erik Spoelstra’s starting lineup in Monday’s win against the New York Knicks.
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But now the veteran needs to take a step back, in order not to jeopardize his chances at a healthy season moving forward.
"“I played the last game and it hasn’t gotten any better, so I think we just want to be smart and just try to get rid of the little nagging injury that will just linger on and become something else,” Deng told Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel."
Having sat out against the Detroit Pistons, Deng will reassess the situation again before the Heat’s rematch with the New York Knicks.
"“Maybe I’ll miss the New York game. I’m not sure,” he explained. “But I never liked to look at it that way. I just want to take it game by game. Hopefully it’ll feel better. If not, then the next game comes up and just keep trying to get ready for it.”"
This is definitely the right strategy, especially knowing from last year’s experiences how badly injuries can derail a team; because of on-going health problems across the board, Miami went through a record-high 31 starting lineups in 2014-2015.
So far, so good this time around with the Heat only having used three.
The other thing to reflect on is the fact that this season’s squad is much deeper than before.
Obviously everyone is keeping their fingers crossed for a healthy 2015-2016, but for the times when a guy does need to sit out, Miami has all of it’s bases covered.
Take Tyler Johnson, for example. Currently shooting 50 percent from the 3-point line, he is averaging 8.8 points per game.
Rookie Justise Winslow has also made quite a defensive impact already, proving to be able to hang with the likes of LeBron James and Paul George; he is currently averaging 5.0 rebounds a game.
Even Amar’e Stoudemire gave the Heat 10 quick points, 1 rebound and 1 assist in eight minutes of play last Thursday against the Sacramento Kings.
Although Heat Nation is hoping for a quick recovery for Deng, Miami should not feel rushed in bringing him back. Not only is the team off for two days after their trip to New York, but they have plenty of backup talent to keep things going.