The Miami Heat are set to begin their 2022 NBA Playoffs journey on Sunday afternoon. However, they still don’t know who they’ll be facing off against in the first round.
Despite that, the Heat are still getting themselves ready for Game 1. Heat forward P.J. Tucker missed the team’s last two games of the regular season with a calf injury, but it seems like there’s hope that he will be ready for Sunday.
“Tucker again worked with coaches and teammates after practice on Friday and the hope is he’ll be able to play on Sunday,” wrote the Miami Herald‘s Anthony Chiang.
The Heat are surely hoping that they will have Tucker available for the start of the playoffs.
Tucker signed with the Heat last offseason after winning an NBA title in 2021 with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks swept the Heat in the first round of the playoffs last season.
During the 2021-22 regular season, Tucker averaged 7.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 41.5 percent from beyond the arc.
He’s been a steady presence in the lineup for the Heat virtually all season. Miami finished the regular season with the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference after earning a 53-29 record.
Miami’s first-round opponent will be either the Cleveland Cavaliers or Atlanta Hawks. Those two teams will face off Friday night in an elimination game.
Tucker has the ability to become a free agent after this season, as he holds a player option for the 2022-23 campaign. However, he’s surely more focused on helping the Heat win a title this year.
