The Miami Heat have had quite a rough start to their campaign. They hold a lowly 10-26 record and are regarded as one of the lesser talented teams across the association, decimated by the losses of superstars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh in the past few years. The roster was also gutted this previous offseason as they lost starting wings Joe Johnson and Luol Deng. With circumstances already being unkind to Pat Riley and his franchise, the Heat announced another brutal loss to injury in young stud Justise Winslow. Following from the Miami Heat’s Twitter account:
Justise Winslow will undergo surgery tomorrow to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder & is likely out for the remainder of the season.
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) January 5, 2017
Winslow has provided as one of the lone bright spots for this franchise this year. His loss will be a huge blow and all but cements Miami’s bottom feeder status this season. Winslow was selected 10th overall by Miami in last year’s draft and has taken a major jump in his second NBA season as a full-time starter, averaging 10.9 points per game while grabbing 5.2 rebounds and handing out 3.7 assists. Aside from point guard Goran Dragic and center Hassan Whiteside, Winslow may very well be the Heat’s most talented player already.
The Heat must figure out where to go from here. There have already been plenty of trade rumors surrounding various players on their roster, particularly Dragic. With Winslow likely absent from the lineup for the remainder of the season, Miami will need elevated production from their other wings such as Tyler Johnson, Dion Waiters, James Johnson, Josh Richardson and Wayne Ellington the majority of who have struggled to stay healthy themselves. It seemed Miami would be headed for a high draft pick anyways and the loss of Winslow has all but solidified the chances of Riley and his Miami Heat getting a high lottery pick once the draft rolls around.
