With Jimmy Butler listed as out against the visiting Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday due to a back injury, Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra indicated he hasn't ruled out the possibility of Dion Waiters and James Johnson being called to action.
"I would have everybody on the table. Not only Dion, but JJ," Spoelstra said, according to 790 The Ticket's Brendan Tobin. "Everybody that's available will be in uniform and on my mind."
Waiters, 28, hasn't appeared in a game this season, in part due to multiple team-issued suspensions related to his conduct.
Johnson has played in 2019-20, but not since Nov. 27, and the 32-year-old forward hasn't appeared in consecutive games since early November. In six total appearances, he's averaged just 3.3 points and 1.8 rebounds in 11.3 minutes per game.
The duo has been in Spoelstra's doghouse dating back to the preseason. Waiters was issued his first of three suspensions this season because of his behavior during the team's final preseason game, while Johnson was initially sent home from training camp after failing to meet the Heat's conditioning requirements.
Despite Waiters and Johnson representing $27.4 million in team salary, Miami hasn't struggled for lack of talent. Thanks in major part to Butler's offseason addition, Bam Adebayo's continued development, and major contributions from rookies Tyler Herro and Kendrick Nunn, as well as former D-III player Duncan Robinson, the Heat enter Sunday's slate with a 25-10 record, good for third place in the competitive Eastern Conference.
