To stand a chance in the NBA you need your star players to be healthy to be successful.
Just ask the Brooklyn Nets, who built a team around James Harden, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, only to see them play a total of just 16 games together.
Miami Heat suffered with injuries in 2024, with Tyler Herro, Terry Rozier and Bam Adebayo among those missing time towards the end of the regular season.
There is some good news ahead of 2024/25, with head coach Erik Spoelstra able to select a combination never seen before for the Heat.
It’s NBA preseason and Miami took on the New Orleans Pelicans, finally able to field a combination they have never used before.
Per @IraHeatBeat on X, this was the first time Bam Adebayo, Nikola Jovic, Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro and Terry Rozier had ever been on the court for the Miami at the same time, let alone start together.
Butler and Herro have been on the Heat since 2019, Adebayo from 2017, and Jovic from 2022, with Rozier acquired as part of the Kyle Lowry trade in early 2024.
It has meant that for the second part of the NBA season and the play-offs, Miami were unable to select the five together for a single minute, which is quite remarkable.
Being preseason, the five did not last together for long, amid rotations, but this is a positive sign for the team heading into the new campaign.
It almost did not happen after Jovic suffered two separate injuries during the off-season. He has worked hard to be able to recover.
Amid speculation Jimmy Butler could be the next superstar player to be traded, Miami will hope this starting combination is a long-term one, and not just a short-term mirage.
Getting to the regular season with this starting five intact would be a mini-success.
Miami Heat led for most of the game and held off a late New Orleans Pelicans comeback, winning 101-99.
The Pelicans brought it back to 99-99 before Pelle Larson scored the winning bucket with seconds left on the clock.
Adebayo, Butler and Rozier each played 17 minutes, Herro 15 and Jovic 13.
Herro scored the joint most points with 12, along with Duncan Robinson, while Zion Williamson scored 13 for the Pelicans.
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