The suspension of Miami Heat guard Dion Waiters has been an early bump in the road for the 2019-20 edition of the Heat, with the veteran scheduled to sit out two more contests.
For Waiters, it could be an especially costly absence since he might end up losing a $1.2 million bonus if he misses more than 12 games this season.
If Waiters misses/is held out of nine more games, no $1.2M bonus for 70 appearances. https://t.co/DQLUNfLchq
— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) October 25, 2019
Waiters was suspended last Saturday night for the team’s opener, with “unacceptable incidents” offered as the reason. The banishment came in the wake of complaints he had made the previous evening about playing time during the Heat’s final preseason contest.
It was announced yesterday that Waiters’ suspension had ended, but that he would not rejoin the team until Monday. Prior to his return, the Heat will play road contests at Milwaukee on Saturday afternoon, followed by a Sunday night matchup in Minnesota.
Back in the summer of 2017, Waiters signed a contract extension worth $52 million, though he signed the deal while attempting to come back from a nagging ankle injury.
After attempting to play through that ankle injury during the 2017-18 campaign, Waiters underwent season-ending surgery in January 2018 and played in only 30 games. He required nearly a year of rehabilitation and ended up taking the court in just 44 contests last season.
Trade rumors surrounding Waiters have been surfacing for quite a while, though his remaining contract is a likely drawback to making any deal. The fact that he’s having issues on his third NBA team presumably makes him even less desirable.
