Bjelica and Dragic join team before game against Knicks
Half of the Miami Heat’s acquisitions from the NBA’s trade deadline are with the team over the weekend for the final two games of their three-game road trip.
Newly acquired Nemanja Bjelica joined the Heat (22-24) in New York on Sunday for practice ahead of their Monday matchup against the Knicks (24-22).
The Heat traded for Bjelica last Thursday, sending Moe Harkless and Chris Silva to Sacramento Kings for the outside-shooting big man.
Goran Dragic also joined the team over the weekend.
“[Sunday] was an important day,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “It was really good to have Goran here. He’s been putting in a lot of work behind the scenes. He was targeting this. Belly [Bjelica] joined him on the flight. They’re very familiar with each other. It was good to have Belly in the mix.
“To be able to have this practice day overall was important to our whole group. It wasn’t like a training camp practice, but we were able to get some things down.”
Dragic has missed the team’s last four games due to back spasms, last playing in a loss against the Indiana Pacers on March 19. He was listed as probable for Monday’s game.
“I did a layup in the first quarter and then I fell on my back, and it started tightening up,” Dragic said about his injury. “I played through it. But in the end, the next day was just back spasms and the back locked up. From there on, you guys know that I was out.
“It’s nice to be back with the team. I feel fine right now. I did a full practice, so we’ll see how my back is going to react tomorrow. From there on, we’re going to make a decision.”
Victor Oladipo, the two-time All-Star guard the Heat also traded for during the trade deadline, is in Miami with a head cold and has been ruled out for Monday.
Spoelstra didn’t have a timeline for when Oladipo would join the team, with the Heat set to end the road trip on Wednesday against the Indiana Pacers ahead of a four-game homestand.
“Everything right now is day-to-day,” he said. “Continue to make evaluations and do what we think is best from there.”
Kendrick Nunn is also out for Monday with a right-ankle sprain he sustained during the second quarter of Friday’s loss to the Charlotte Hornets while Udonis Haslem and KZ Okpala remain away from the team due to the league’s health and safety protocols.
The Knicks will be without starting center Mitchell Robinson on Monday after he fractured his foot against the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday. All-Star forward Julius Randle (right-thigh contusion) and Reggie Bullock (right-ankle sprain) were listed as questionable.
Ariza up to speed
Spoelstra said that Sunday’s practice session was particularly helpful for Trevor Ariza, the 6-8 forward the Heat traded for on March 17, with practice time limited during the pandemic-condensed season that has the Heat playing 36 games in 72 days in the second half of the season.
Ariza has played in the Heat’s last five games, starting the previous two, after previous starting forward Kelly Olynyk was sent to the Houston Rockets as part of the trade package for Oladipo.
“He’s very far along,” Spoelstra said. “It speaks to his veteran savviness and experiences. He’s played in so many different systems. He’s always been known as a very intelligent, high-IQ player. He has a role that he plays for us that’s similar he’s played for a lot of other teams, so it’s not like he’s had to make many adjustments. He’s had to learn a little bit of terminology and then go on the fly from there.”
Fewer options
Gorgui Dieng, a reported Heat target, is expected to sign with the San Antonio Spurs according to the New York Times, giving Miami one fewer frontcourt option on the buyout market.
Dieng was released by the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday and cleared waivers Sunday.
LaMarcus Aldridge, who received a buyout from the Spurs and cleared waivers on Saturday, was another reported Heat target who chose to go elsewhere with the expectation he’ll sign with the Brooklyn Nets.
The Heat have two open roster spots after their recent trades.
Players must be waived by April 9 in order to be eligible for another team’s playoff roster, with that player then able to sign at any time until the regular season’s final day.