In the waning days of the NBA’s offseason, Miami Heat guard Dion Waiters is making sure he’s prepared for what’s expected to be another vigorous training camp.
Recently, he was joined in preseason training by Oklahoma City Thunder guard Chris Paul, who could conceivably become a teammate at some point during the upcoming campaign.
Waiters and Paul are shown honing their games at sports performance trainer David Alexander’s DBC Fitness center in Miami. The two veterans are just some of the countless NBA players and other professional athletes who have spent time at the facility.
DBC Fitness focuses on more the subtle aspects of athletes, honing in on the improvement of aspects such as agility, acceleration and quickness.
For the 27-year-old Waiters, he’s hoping to enjoy his first healthy full season with the Heat after the first three dealt with continuing ankle issues. His first campaign during the 2016-17 season ended abruptly because of a severely sprained left ankle.
After attempting to play through the nagging injury the following season, Waiters was forced to have season-ending surgery in January 2018. Snags in his rehabilitation delayed his return to the court until this past January.
Whether Paul winds up with the Heat is still unknown, but previous attempts to acquire him from the Thunder during the summer came up short. The 34-year-old guard was traded to the Thunder by the Houston Rockets in the deal that sent Russell Westbrook to Houston.
However, with the Thunder clearly in rebuilding mode, they aren’t looking to hold on to a veteran player like Paul, who also has a massive contract. The Heat are likely to again seek a trade for him as the regular season gets closer, but it’s unclear exactly what it would require the team to give up in return.