Nikola Jovic headshot

Nikola Jovic News: Gets garbage-time run in Game 1

Written by RotoWire Staff

Updated on April 22, 2025 at 9:28am

Jovic played the final 1:23 of Sunday's 121-100 loss to the Cavaliers in Game 1 of the Heat's first-round playoff series, missing his only field-goal attempt and recording no other statistics.

Jovic missed the final 27 games of the regular season as well as the Heat's 109-90 play-in win over the Bulls last Wednesday due to a fractured right hand, but he was cleared to play in advance of Friday's Play-In Tournament finale versus the Hawks. The third-year big man didn't see the floor in the Heat's 123-114 win over Atlanta, and while he remained outside of the rotation for the series opener in Cleveland, he got the chance to play in garbage time. Before getting injured, Jovic had been a regular part of the Heat rotation, but head coach Erik Spoelstra may be hesitant to give the 21-year-old meaningful minutes in the playoffs coming off a lengthy absence.

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