Jovic is on a positive path to return to the lineup Friday as he recorded a full practice session, a Heat spokesperson told ClutchPoints Thursday. He is officially listed as “questionable” for the contest per the team’s X, formerly Twitter, account, but the star said he “would love to play” against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
“I feel pretty good,” Jovic said following Thursday’s practice. “But we’ll see what the training staff and everybody has to say about how smart it is to play [Friday]. But I would love to play and we’ll see.”
As said before, the timing could not be worse for Jovic as he was coming off a performance that reminded fans of the talent he has as he was a former first-round pick in 2022. He would act as the spark plug that turned around the game for the Heat against Toronto as he finished with 14 points on four of five shooting, two of two from deep, to go along with four rebounds, a block, and a steal.
Heat’s Nikola Jovic on how recovering from ankle injury was “not easy”
The 21-year-old would be honest to the media after Thursday’s practice, saying that “it was not easy” to sustain the injury, especially in the manner he got it.
“It was not easy,” Jovic said. “But it’s something I couldn’t avoid. I jumped and landed on somebody’s foot. It’s nothing new. Unfortunately, it’s the same ankle [one he hurt earlier in the season], so it hurt a lot more. But I’m just trying to get back as quickly as I can. I feel like I’m almost 100 percent.”
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Jovic would be relegated to the Heat’s bench after finishing last season and beginning this year in the starting lineup at the power forward spot. After a slow start, Erik Spoelstra made the change and even saw a couple of energizing outings in the second unit. He would not see playing time for an eight-game stretch, but the win over the Raptors showed his strengths.
“It’s something I feel like I did when I was in the second unit, for that little stretch, just drive to the basket and create openings for others,” Jovic said. “I had some open shots. Especially with the second unit, it’s kind of easy to get to the rim. And, like lately, I’m really trying to get to my spots, and I really feel like I know how to do it.”
At any rate, the Heat are currently 13-11, which puts them sixth in the Eastern Conference as they look to bounce back after Monday’s loss to the Pistons and perform well against the Thunder on Friday night.
