The Miami Heat released their injury report for Thursday’s game against the Boston Celtics.
Max Strus (knee) and Victor Oladipo (quad) are out for Thursday’s matchup while KZ Okpala is questionable with an ankle injury.
Heat injury report for Thursday vs. visiting Celtics largely as expected:
Marcus Garrett, out (G League)
Max Strus, out (knee)
Victor Oladipo, out (quad)
KZ Okpala, questionable (ankle)
Boston plays tonight in Orlando.— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) November 3, 2021
Miami will play host to Boston, who will be playing the second game of a back-to-back on Thursday night.
The Celtics have gotten out to a slow start this season, but they have a chance to improve on their 2-5 record on Wednesday night against the lowly Orlando Magic.
As for Miami’s injury report, it is a good sign that none of the team’s major stars are listed for Thursday’s game.
The Heat have gotten off to a great start this season, going 6-1, and they dominated the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night.
Even if the team is without Okpala on Thursday, it shouldn’t be a major blow to the rotation. The 22-year-old has appeared in just four games this season and is averaging just 4.0 minutes per game.
Through those four games, Okpala is averaging 0.8 points and 0.8 rebounds per game.
The Heat have relied heavily on their veteran players early in the season as well as third-year guard Tyler Herro.
Herro is in the midst of a breakout campaign, and with Strus out of the lineup, there is a good chance he sees even more looks from beyond the arc on Thursday.
The Heat won two of their three matchups with Boston last season.
Thursday’s contest is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m. EST in Miami at FTX Arena.
