Terry Rozier had his first campaign with the Miami Heat end prematurely with a neck injury, but it reportedly won’t delay his start to next season as he is likely to be available for training camp.
“The hope and expectation is that Rozier’s neck injury will heal and he’ll be ready for training camp at the start of October,” wrote Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald.
Now 30 years old, Rozier was acquired in January in a trade with the Charlotte Hornets, but the veteran guard was not able to lift the Heat offense to new heights.
Also dealing with a knee injury that sidelined him briefly, Rozier appeared in 31 regular season games for Miami. He averaged just 16.4 points per game for the Heat after averaging 23.2 points per game in 30 appearances for the Hornets prior to the trade that sent Kyle Lowry to Charlotte.
Rozier played his final game of the 2023-24 NBA season on April 7. It was thought that his neck injury was only going to be a minor issue, and he in fact attempted to play through it.
But after sitting out the final four games of the regular season, he did not take part in Miami’s two play-in round games despite some “cautious optimism” he might be able to return. He then did not dress for any of its five games in a first-round loss to the Boston Celtics in the 2024 NBA Playoffs.
At the time, he was said to be sidelined on a week-to-week basis, so it is unknown if he would have been able to return if the Heat had been able to advance further into the playoffs. After the season ended, team president Pat Riley said the thinking is that Rozier will eventually recover.
“It’s a process; it takes time,” Riley said earlier this month. “He said he feels good. When you’re dealing with a spine, you’re not going to mess around with it. It’s going to heal. Doctors convinced us and him that in time it will heal and go away.”
The Heat also had to take on the top-seeded Celtics without star Jimmy Butler, who injured his knee in a play-in round loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. The franchise player’s limited availability may be a growing point of contention and has raised speculation about a possible trade away from Miami.
The Heat will undoubtedly look for ways to improve this coming offseason. Having a fully healthy Rozier, now with some time with the team under his belt, would certainly help the cause.