A trio of returns
Butler, Adebayo, Herro are all back in the mix
Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro were cleared to return by the Miami Heat for Wednesday night’s game against the San Antonio Spurs at the AT&T Center, after missing time earlier in the week.
Also cleared for the first of the two games against the Spurs over an eight-day span was center Dewayne Dedmon, who did not accompany the Heat on Tuesday’s flight from South Florida, after entering the league’s health and safety protocols.
Dedmon then was cleared in time to travel Wednesday by private jet.
Such reversals typically involve contact-tracing double checking and inconclusive initial test results.
The Heat, though, did add a name to their injury report, with forward Andre Iguodala listed as out, due to a sore left hip, the reasoning the team frequently has used when resting the 37-year-old forward.
Iguodala also missed the April home victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers and last Friday’s road loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves for the same reasoning.
The lone uncertainly entering Wednesday’s game was with Herro, who was listed as questionable as late as the NBA’s 5:30 p.m. injury report, with a sore right foot.
That status was upgraded 90 minutes before Wednesday’s game.
The Heat defeated the Houston Rockets on Monday night at AmericanAirlines Arena in the absences of Butler, Adebayo and Herro, with Iguodala and Dedmon offering strong performances off the bench.
Butler also had missed Sunday’s home victory over the Brooklyn Nets with a sprained right ankle, with the Heat 6-11 in his absence this season.
Adebayo missed Monday’s game with a sore right knee, with the Heat 5-2 in his absence.
Herro also has only missed that Monday game with his foot issue, with the Heat 7-5 in his absence.
The game in San Antonio opened a two-game trip that concludes with Friday night’s key playoff-seeding battle against the Atlanta Hawks. The Heat then host the Spurs next Wednesday to conclude the two-game season series.
Again away from the team is guard Victor Oladipo, who has been sidelined by knee pain since April 8, having appeared in four games since being acquired from the Houston Rockets at the March 25 NBA trading deadline.
The Heat also listed guard Gabe Vincent on their injury report, with Vincent playing through what the team has been listing as a sore right knee.