Miami Heat guards Tyler Hero (Achilles) and Kyle Lowry (knee) are out for Thursday night’s home game against the Milwaukee Bucks. Caleb Martin (quad) is also out.
Udonis Haslem (Achilles) and Dewayne Dedmon (foot) are listed as questionable. Bam Adebayo (wrist) is improved. Not to mention, Omer Jurseven (ankle) and Nikola Jokic (back) are out indefinitely.
According to several NBA betting sites, the Heat have the 14th-best odds to win the championship. Several sportsbooks are giving better odds to the Philadelphia 76ers and Cleveland Cavaliers.
#MILvsMIA INJURY UPDATE: Tyler Hero (Achilles), Kyle Lowry (knee) and Caleb Martin (quad) are out for tomorrow night’s game against the Bucks.
Bam Adebayo (wrist) is listed as possible.
— Miami Heat (@MiamiHEAT) January 11, 2023
This is Hero’s 11th game to miss this season. In 32 starts, the fourth-year guard is averaging a career-high 21.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists and 1.0 steals per game. To add to these stats, he shot 44.5% from the floor and 39.2% from beyond the arc.
On December 15, the 22-year-old scored a career-high 41 points in 40 minutes in the Heat’s 111-108 win over the Houston Rockets. He finished 13 of 20 (65%) from the field and 10 of 15 (66.7%) from 3-point range.
Heat guards Tyler Hero (Achilles), Kyle Lowry (knee) have been ruled out against the Bucks on Thursday.
Also, this is Kyle Lowry’s seventh game sitting out. He averaged 13.1 points, 4.4 boards, 5.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 36 starts. He is also shooting 39.8% from the floor and 33.6% from beyond the arc.
Per Milwaukee’s injury report, Serge Ibaka (hamstring) and Khris Middleton (knee) are out indefinitely. Bucks are 5-5 in their last 10 games. However, they are 4-1 in their last five contests.
The Bucs will play their 41st game of the season tonight.
Chris Middleton will appear in the 7th. pic.twitter.com/YRoHL7iJ9h
— BucksLead (@BucksLead) January 11, 2023
Miami is now 6-4 in their last 10 games. Thursday night marks the season opener for these Eastern Conference rivals. They are 1-2 against Milwaukee in their last three head-to-head games.
Moreover, the Bucks are 11-9 from the distance, 23-9 as favorites and 27-14 overall. As for the Heat, they are 12-9 at home, 3-9 as underdogs, and 22-20 overall. Sportsbooks have not yet released betting lines for this intra-conference contest.
According to the ESPN Basketball Power Index, Milwaukee has a 55.1% chance of beating the Heat away from home. Miami ranks dead last in scoring this season, averaging 108.8 points per game.
