Kevin Garnett out vs. Heat, Kirilenko questionable
Nets' Kevin Garnett practices during a training session at the O2 Arena in London on Jan. 15, 2014. Credit: AP / Kirsty Wigglesworth
Apparently, Kevin Garnett's back is still bothering him.
The Nets announced Tuesday that the 37-year-old veteran won't be traveling with the team to Miami, meaning he'll miss his seventh straight game because of back spasms when the Nets meet the Heat at AmericanAirlines Arena on Wednesday.
Andrei Kirilenko, who also sat out Monday's 101-97 win over the Atlantic Division-leading Raptors with a sprained right ankle suffered Sunday, did make the trip to South Florida and is listed as a gametime decision.
Garnett was originally supposed to return Monday from his extended absence and was initially penciled in the starting lineup. But something happened between the time Nets coach Jason Kidd addressed reporters around 6 p.m and the scheduled 7:30 p.m. tipoff when the team announced Garnett wouldn't play.
“He tightened up, so we pulled the plug on him,” Kidd said following their victory, which upped their record to 22-9 since Jan. 1. “We will see how he feels [Tuesday].”
After taking on Miami, the Nets don't play again until they meet the Wizards at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. on Saturday. They're scheduled to practice in Miami during the two days leading up to that matchup, meaning it looks like, at minimum, Garnett won't be around before the team heads back north later in the week.
The Nets have beaten the Heat in their two previous meetings this season, both coming in Brooklyn. Wednesday's game marks the first of two contests between the two teams in South Florida over the next four weeks.
