Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Robinson pushes past knee issue, likely to resume chase of milestone
WASHINGTON — Duncan Robinson said he is not chasing records, but it appears as if the bruised right knee of the Miami Heat guard will allow him to do so anyway.
Sidelined for the balance of the game after leaving Saturday night’s loss to the Washington Wizards in the third quarter, the 3-point specialist, was back on the court for Monday’s practice at Georgetown University before the Heat departed for Tuesday night’s game against the Detroit Pistons.
“It feels pretty good. It feels alright,” Robinson said after practice. “Just a play in the paint, just kind of hit knees and came together with somebody. I think it was Brad Beal. But it feels all right.”
Robinson has appeared in 164 consecutive regular-season games, 10 from the franchise-record streak set by Glen Rice from 1992 to ‘94.
“The record itself doesn’t mean a lot,” said Robinson, who admitted he was not sure where he stood with his streak. “But the fact that I pride myself in just always being available, always being reliable and somebody you can count on, that is what I pride myself on, not necessarily the record.”
Robinson remained in the locker room for the balance of Saturday’s three-point loss at the start of the four-game trip.
“Obviously, it’s not a great feeling,” he said. “I want to be out there helping out in any way that I can, even if it’s just on the bench supporting. But I got back there, did some kind of tests.
“Ultimately, I’ve been fortunate that I haven’t had any sort of knee thing in my past, so the fact that it was that, we just kind of decided and got a recommendation that it was probably best to just kind of take it easy.”
He said neither an X-ray nor an MRI was required.
“I just woke up the next day, did some tests to see how it felt,” he said. “It was a little sore, which was expected. But it feels all right.”
Centers Bam Adebayo and Dewayne Dedmon remained on the side during Monday’s practice, both feeling ill. Both are expected to be available against the Pistons.
Forward Markieff Morris (neck) and Victor Oladipo (knee) remain away from the team.
Friendly confines
It has now become routine for the Heat that when in Washington to face the Wizards, practices are held at one of Georgetown’s gyms.
That, in turn, has allowed for time with former New York Knicks rival and current Hoyas coach Patrick Ewing.
“It feels like he’s part of the Heat family, even though he’s not,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, with Ewing having played under Heat President Pat Riley in New York and then worked as an assistant under former Heat coach Stan Van Gundy with the Orlando Magic, having also assisted former NBA coach Steve Clifford. “We’ve heard so many Patrick Ewing stories over the years, and obviously our battles. He’s one of my favorite guys.
“I love bumping into or chatting with him. Over the years, I got know him more when he was on Stan and Cliff ’s staffs, more than when he was previously with the Knicks. But I’ve really enjoyed my times with him.”
To a degree, the Georgetown campus has turned into a home away from home, with the Heat twice with extended stays in Washington this season.
“I like going there,” Spoelstra said. “They have great facilities there. We’ve done practices and shootarounds in both their men’s and women’s facilities.”
Spoelstra said such facilities offer a break from the routine.
“I love going to college practice facilities and there are certain places on the road where we go to high school gyms,” Spoelstra said. “I just think it’s fun. It’s a change of scenery and kind of brings some guys back to when they were first starting to get into it. Some of it is logistics.”