The Miami Heat will play LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers at home on Monday. Only three Heat players are listed on the injury report ahead of their matchup against the Lakers.
Star Heat wing Jimmy Butler (right knee tendonitis) is probable to play for Miami, while guard R.J. Hampton (illness) is listed as questionable. Wing Caleb Martin (knee) has been ruled out.
Heat injury report for Monday's game vs. Lakers:
Out: Caleb Martin (knee).
Questionable: RJ Hampton (illness).
Probable: Jimmy Butler (right knee tendinitis).
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) November 5, 2023
Martin has played just one game for the Heat this season. He logged 20 minutes of playing time against the Detroit Pistons on Oct. 25.
The Heat played the Washington Wizards on Friday in their first In-Season Tournament game. Guard Tyler Herro starred in the win for Miami, seeing as how he dropped a team-high 24 points to go along with 10 rebounds and nine assists.
Herro is on track to have the best season of his NBA career so far. He’s averaging 25.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game while converting 45.3 percent of his shots from the floor and 45.1 percent of his 3-point attempts across six appearances with the storied Heat franchise.
Miami defeated Washington — which currently owns the worst record in the entire Eastern Conference at 1-4 — by a final score of 121-114 to improve its record to 2-4 on the season. Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma both put together solid performances for the Wizards in the loss, as the former scored 19 points while the latter scored 22 points and grabbed four rebounds.
The Heat won’t play their next In-Season Tournament game until Nov. 14 when they take on the Charlotte Hornets on the road. Miami will then face off against the New York Knicks on Nov. 24 and Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 28 to wrap up their group play schedule.
If Butler isn’t able to play against the Lakers, it would be tough for the team to win its second game in a row on Monday.
The Lakers are fresh off a rough loss to the Orlando Magic on Saturday. Magic forwards Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner scored 25-plus points each in the Orlando victory.
