Dwyane Wade Injury: Foot Problems Will Ruin Miami Heat's Quest for Redemption

If the Heat are going to get back to the finals and win them, they will need a healthy "Big 3" by the time that the playoffs roll around. The Eastern Conference is too strong at the top for any slight problems to be overcome. 

Now, Dwyane Wade has missed the last three games. According to Marcus Thompson, it's not likely that he'll play in Tuesday's game against the Warriors. 

But the possibility of missing the Warriors game is not important. The Warriors are ice cold, and Stephen Curry is out. The Heat can beat them anyway and even if they don't, it's only one game. 

But if Wade has Plantar fasciitis, it's a terrible sign for the Heat. That's a nagging injury that will not go away. More than that, this is a short season that's not going to give the Heat (or any teams) a lot of off days. 

The injury is especially troubling for a player like Wade. He relies a lot on his speed and cutting ability. The fact that he may well have an injury that will significantly hamper that hurts both him and his team.

According to Royce Young of CBSSports, Wade isn't even aware of what the injury is, though he's not ruling Plantar fasciitis out.

"

It’s just hurting. It could be three different things. (Plantar fasciitis is) one of them. The bruise is one of ‘em. Maybe it’s a combination. I just know that it’s in the area of the plantar fascia and I know it’s bruised as well. Whatever it is, it’s just taking its course, taking its time to get healthy. 

"

The problem is that there isn't a lot of time for this injury to take its course. Plantar fasciitis doesn't go away easily, and there's not a lot of time. The Heat will have a week off for the All-Star Game, but little else. 

Not only will Miami need Wade in the lineup in the playoffs, they will need him at his best. That means no nagging injuries and no rust from taking some time off. 

The more this happens, the more their title window begins to shrink. The Eastern Conference is strong at the top, and the Western Conference has teams that can easily win the title. Without Wade at his best, the Heat won't match up. 

Miami had better hope that this injury is not Plantar fasciitis and that it completely goes away some time soon. It's looking bad right now.

Remember, even the Heat at full health are far from a guarantee to win it all. The Heat without such a key player will mean that we'll need to wait until year three (or later) of the Big 3 era for another title to find its way to South Beach.

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