The Miami Heat is an NBA team that’s not averse to controversy. The team’s latest drama was with the league for a fine on their injury report ahead of their win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on December 15, Manila time.
The league slapped them with a $25,000 fine yesterday for their inability to update their injury report. According to the NBA’s statement, the Heat apparently “failed to disclose an accurate game availability status” for some of their players ahead of their victory over the Thunder at Paycom Center.
Jimmy Butler did not suit up for the Heat as the team wanted to give his knees as much rest as possible. It’s important to note that the OKBET bookies also had the Heat winning over an OKC team close to the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Resting their star forward didn’t hurt their chances of winning if you look at the overall picture.
It’s easy to see why the league was ruthless with the Heat. Adam Silver and the NBA’s executives are trying to combat load management. They want to prevent fans from not seeing their favorite players play. While the practice is necessary for the player’s long-term health, it robs fans of the opportunity to see the sport’s top talent go at each other.
The Heat didn’t take the fine lying down, though. A few hours after the league announced the fine, the team released a hilariously long injury report ahead of their game against the San Antonio Spurs in Mexico City.
Every single Heat player was on it, and the team listed different injuries that made them questionable to play. Only two players—Gabe Vincent and Omer Yurtseven—were out for the game.
It’s clear to everyone that Miami will have all their players ready to play against the Spurs in front of an adoring Mexican crowd. They understand that this is Miami’s way of telling the league that they find the fine ridiculous at best.
Butler: The NBA Doesn’t Roll With Us
The injury report showed the Heat’s current temperament toward the NBA. Jimmy Buckets put the team’s thoughts into words by saying the league doesn’t favor the Heat.
“I don’t feel like the NBA rock too much with the Heat anyway,” Butler told Inside The Heat’s Shandel Richardson. “At least we get to play somewhere. We don’t got no TV games or nothing.”
The data supports Butler’s views. The 2020 NBA Finalists didn’t crack the top ten for the most televised games on major American networks.
Some may think the Heat are overreacting to this issue. However, the fine might have been the straw that broke their backs. With their latest jab at the league, don’t expect the Miami Heat to quiet down any time soon.
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