As the Miami Heat’s bench rotation continues to evolve early this season, so has veteran guard Josh Richardson’s role. After missing the second half of last season following right shoulder surgery, Richardson made the decision this past summer to pick up the $3.1 million player option in his contract to stay with the Heat instead of entering free agency. But at the start of the second season of Richardson’s second stint with the Heat, he’s still searching for his place on this season’s roster after recently falling out of the rotation.
Entering Sunday’s matchup against the Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena, Richardson has received four straight DNP-CDs (did not play, coach’s decision) despite being available and in uniform. Richardson, 31, also won’t play on Sunday against the Raptors because he’s sick and did not travel with the team to Toronto.
He also missed time earlier this season with a calf strain and pain in his left heel. “It’s been hard,” Richardson said of his turbulent start to the season, with the Heat set to complete its quick two-game trip on Monday against the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics on the second night of a back-to-back set (7:30 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Sun). “Frustrating, but it is what it is. I’m just trying to stack days. My shoulder got healthy, trying to get up to speed and get ready and then feet things start popping up. So I’m just trying to get everything in my body on the same page.” The injuries have made it hard for Richardson to find a rhythm, as he’s averaging four points, 1.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and one steal per game while shooting just 28.9 percent from the field and 6 of 22 (27.3 percent) from three-point range in his eight appearances (all off the bench) this regular season.
The Heat has been outscored by 10.6 points per 100 possessions with Richardson on the court this season, which is the worst individual net rating among Heat players. That underwhelming production and those injury issues have led to others, like 2024 second-round pick Pelle Larsson, moving ahead of Richardson on the Heat’s depth chart. “It changes daily, honestly. It’s hard to know,” Richardson said when asked about his role with the Heat this season.
“So far I’ve been playing as a ball handler, defender, getting us into offense and trying to pick up the best player. Going forward, you never know. It might be a day that I got to ball handle, it might be a day that I got to catch and shoot, it might be a day that it’s just defense. So it kind of changes.” Before the illness that kept Richardson from traveling with the team to Toronto for Sunday’s game, he was dealing with lingering heel pain that forced him to miss practice earlier this month. That heel injury also forced him to miss some time last season. “I missed some time last year for it, I missed some time earlier this year for it,” said Richardson, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this upcoming summer.
“It’s just kind of one of those things, I think, that kind of got worse sitting down for seven months not working and not being able to lift weights. When your body starts moving full NBA speed again, it’s hard to re-acclimate. So hopefully it resolves, but it’s just one of those lingering things.” Richardson was cleared for full-contact basketball work in October right before the start of this season after spending months rehabbing from March surgery on his right shoulder.
The road back wasn’t easy and the road back to his usual form on the court hasn’t been easy either. But whenever playing time does come Richardson’s way again, he just wants to make the most of it. As Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has emphasized early this season, “the games will dictate everything with the rotation.” “Just got to try to attack it,” Richardson said of his situation. “Don’t shy away from it. When it’s my chance to go out there, I’m going to try to take advantage.”
WHAT NEXT?
With the Heat eliminated from the NBA Cup, it awaits the announcement of the missing two games on its standard 82-game schedule. As one of the 22 teams that won’t advance to the quarterfinals, the Heat will play two regular-season games (one home game and one road game) on Dec. 12 or Dec. 13 and Dec. 15 or Dec. 16 to fill the missing two games in its 82-game schedule. The announcement of those two games are expected to come late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning. The group stage of the in-season tournament ends Tuesday. “I know we all would have liked to have been in Vegas,” Spoelstra said, referring to the semifinal games and championship game of the tournament that will be played in Las Vegas. “That’s not the case, but it sparks something more. When you have something to play for, I think it’s always good. I think it will just continue to get better.”
INJURY REPORT
Along with missing Richardson, the Heat is without Josh Christopher (G League), Keshad Johnson (G League), Nikola Jovic (sprained left ankle) and Kel’el Ware (right foot tendinitis) for Sunday’s game against the Raptors. Like Richardson, Jovic didn’t travel with the team to Toronto after spraining his ankle during a workout Saturday morning. As for Ware, he was a late scratch after being added to the Heat’s injury report just a few hours before tipoff on Sunday. The Raptors ruled out Bruce Brown (return to competition reconditioning), Gradey Dick (left calf contusion), Kelly Olynyk (back strain) and Immanuel Quickley (partial UCL tear in left elbow).
