Just games after he made his return to the court, Dru Smith’s season is over.
Smith sustained a torn left Achilles tendon in Monday’s win over the Brooklyn Nets, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Smith was dribbling up the court in the second quarter of the 110-95 win over the Nets at the Kesaya Center when he suddenly lost the ball and fell to the court without being touched. He was clearly in a lot of pain and was eventually helped off the court and into the locker room.
Smith averaged 6.3 points and 2.6 rebounds in 14 games this season. The 26-year-old, who went undrafted out of Missouri in 2022, tore his right ACL just nine games into last season after making it into the Heat rotation. He is on a two-way deal with the organization.
“Obviously the air went out of the building,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, via Clutch Points’ Zachary Weinberger. “Seeing him fall like that, it was not a contact injury … We’re all messed up for a while. You don’t want to see anybody get hurt, but we all have such incredible deep respect for his journey, what he’s had to overcome. I’ve been in the building all those times over the last year when nobody else was here and he was doing all the extensive treatment and rehab, around the clock, he just has incredible fortitude. You end up absolutely rooting for guys like Dru.”
Despite losing Smith, the Heat surged ahead in the second half on Monday night to grab a 15-point win over the Nets. That win, powered by 23 points from Bam Adebayo, snapped a three-game losing skid. They now sit at 14-13 on the season and will take on the Orlando Magic on Thursday.
