The Miami Heat announced Tuesday that center Hassan Whiteside will not travel with the team to Toronto for their Game 5 battle with the Raptors.
Whiteside has been out since spraining his right knee in Game 3 last Saturday.
INJURY UPDATE: Hassan Whiteside (sprained right MCL) will not travel with the team to Toronto for tomorrow night's Game 5.
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) May 10, 2016
Coach Spo says Whiteside will remain in Miami for treatment and rest.
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) May 10, 2016
The Heat evened up the series at 2-2 last night, but may not have the big fella the rest of the way:
The Miami Herald has learned from a league source that it is a first degree, or least severe, sprain.
The Heat will know more after Whiteside’s swelling and bruising subsides, and he can take a stability test — likely later this week — to see how he responded to rest and treatment. […] After that, it’s mostly about how he can handle the pain, which can be significant, that comes with the injury. And he would need to wear a special brace.
So Heat fans shouldn’t expect this series, but the next one against Cleveland would be possible, if the Heat gets that far.