Miami listed every single player on the injury report for tomorrow’s game.
The NBA fined the Miami Heat $25,000 for “violating injury reporting rules” before Miami’s win over the Oklahoma City Thunder Dec. 14. According to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald, the fine came because “the Heat never formally ruled a few probable and questionable players as available or out prior to the tip-off.”
The Heat made a hilarious, petty move in response to the fine. The team listed every single player on the injury report for tomorrow’s game in Mexico City against the San Antonio Spurs.
Oh the Heat are being PETTY PETTY
After being fined by the NBA for “violating league injury reporting rules” – they’ve now listed EVERY SINGLE PLAYER on the injury report. pic.twitter.com/OU6S4EKYgl
— Danny Marang (@DannyMarang) December 16, 2022
After the league stripped Miami of a second-round pick for improper contact with representatives of Kyle Lowry before the official start of free agency, the Heat released a terse statement.
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) December 1, 2021
Longtime Heat fans may remember that David Stern chastised and fined the San Antonio Spurs in 2012 after Gregg Popovich rested four starters before a nationally televised game against Miami.
Of course, that hasn’t stopped teams from resting players. The league has resisted sensible calls to cut the 82-game regular season and reduce wear-and-tear on players. In that case, regular season games would have higher stakes, and we’d have a better NBA product. But the league seems intent on exploring other ideas, like an in-season tournament, that wouldn’t address the issue.