The Miami Heat are going to be shorthanded for the next few games.
That’s because Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra recently that announced center Meyers Leonard will not join the team on its upcoming five-game Western Conference road trip.
Leonard, 27, has started in the first 49 games of the season for the Heat.
The big man injured his ankle against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday, and did not return to the contest.
Now, it looks like Leonard will miss the next couple weeks of action.
Perhaps the most unfortunate part of this development, Leonard will not get a chance to have his reunion game in Portland on Sunday.
The University of Illinois product played on the Portland Trail Blazers for the first seven years of his career.
Last summer, the Heat acquired the veteran in a trade that saw former franchise star Hassan Whiteside leave Miami. Leonard is the final year of a four-year, $41 million contract that he signed with the Trail Blazers in 2016.
The 7-footer is averaging a solid 6.1 points and 5.1 boards per game this season.