The Miami Heat’s 2021-22 campaign appears to be off to a good start after Coach Erik Spoelstra’s announcement that most of the players will be available for the team’s preseason opener.
Erik Spoelstra said he expects the entire Heat roster to be available for tomorrow’s preseason opener vs. Hawks, besides Victor Oladipo and Udonis Haslem.
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) October 3, 2021
Miami is coming off a disappointing season where it finished as the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference and got swept by eventual champions Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.
Expectations were high last year after the Heat reached the NBA Finals in 2020 and gave the Los Angeles Lakers a good fight before losing the series, 4-2. Unfortunately, the injury bug hit the team hard last season, impacting its chances of repeating as conference champs.
This offseason, the Heat retooled and acquired several key veterans. Kyle Lowry is the most notable new addition. The point guard brings his championship pedigree to a franchise that last won a title in 2013. He has been impressive so far in training camp.
The Heat also added more championship pedigree with P.J. Tucker, who won with the Bucks last season.
Hopefully, the players will be able to develop good chemistry before the start of the regular season and continue to remain healthy by the end of it.